Optimal Route to Battery Electric High-Speed Vessel Services

Abstract

This paper investigates how technical and economic challenges related to diffusion of battery electric vessels are alleviated by appropriate planning of services. A novel Mixed Integer Programming model considering operator and passenger costs for a battery electric high-speed ferry service is further developed and applied for assisting routing and scheduling decisions at a complex connection in Florø, Norway. Results for two other test instances derived from the Florø connection focusing on short-range transport and dense markets are also presented. Except for the short-range case, abatement costs are found to be significant. This is attributed to limited reach and time used for charging of battery electric vessels that compared with diesel vessels call for additional routes and vessels to manage planned operations. Omitting ports from the current route can be a cost-effective strategy when the cost of alternative transport is moderate.

Keywords: Mixed-Integer Programming, Routing and scheduling, Zero emission vessel, Abatement costs, public transport