Technology-Neutral Procurement of a Full-Electric Ferry

To develop a new ferry that is 15-20 % more energy efficient than the diesel ferry that was then in operation. The Norwegian Directorate of Public Roads opted to use a competitive dialogue in order to explore innovative solutions with prospective ferry operators. This was carried out as part of a two stage procurement procedure, i.e. pre-qualifying bidders before entering into the competitive dialogue phase. The Directorate established an advisory group while developing the tender documentation and the evaluation criterion, in order to involve the end-users and assess the technological need. In order to develop a solution, ferry operators bid for the tender while working in partnership with both engineering firms and ship building yards. The Directorate published the first stage of a two stage tender procedure in 2010. The tender refrained from requiring a specific technology. The ferry started operating in 2015 and is currently in full operation. Procurement criteria: - Technical criteria: The tender specifications required a ferry with a capacity for 120 cars and 360 passengers, without prescribing a certain technology. ‘Energy efficiency' was specified in terms of low fuel consumption and ‘low environmental impact' was specified in terms of reduced emissions as a result of a selected energy carrier or technical solution. - Award criteria: The Norwegian Directorate of Public Roads developed an evaluation model with 6 evaluation criteria. The criteria and their respective weightings were as follows: Price: 60 % Quality 40%, broken down into: kWh/PCU*km (18 %) (*PCU = Passenger Car Units) MJ/year (6 %) ton CO2 /year (6 %) kg NOx/year (4 %) Innovation (6 %) - Contract performance clauses: As part of their final offer each bidder proposed their design of the ferry as well as performance data in relation to the environmental aspects of the ferry. If during the execution of the contract the ferry should underperform on any of these aspects, the winning bidder will incur financial penalties. Success factors This tender demonstrated to the Norwegian Directorate of Public Roads that electric vehicles can come out on top in technology neutral tenders if the right technical specifications and award criteria are used. The Norwegian Directorate of Public Roads has used the competitive dialogue procedure in previous tenders and the experience indicates that the decision on whether to use competitive dialogue is very much dependent on the complexity of the procurement. Key Results and Achievements Four transport (ferry) operators participated in this tender. Each operator entered into a consortium together with a ship builder, technology developer and/or engineering company. The 3 unsuccessful bidders were compensated for the time and resources spent on the bid. Novelty The winning shipping company worked with a Norwegian shipyard and a large engineering and electronics company, who co-developed this new ship as the world's first electrically-powered car ferry. The engineering and electronics company developed everything from the battery to the propulsion, and the shipping yard developed the body of the ship. The port batteries will recharge the ferry's battery during the 10-minutes breaks between crossings and will be slowly recharged from the local grid, while the ferry is sailing between the ports. The design of the ferry also lends to further energy savings: the characteristics of the ferry result in the new vessel weighing half of that of a similar, conventionally designed ferry. Whereas the ferry currently serving the route has an engine with an output of 1,500 kW or more than 2,000 horsepower, the battery in the new ferry has an output of 800 kW. In normal conditions, operating at a speed of 10 knots, a battery power of 400 kW is sufficient. Sustainability Impacts A 10-year contract was awarded to the winning bidder, due to the fact that the investment in developing a new ferry is so high, and that a shorter term contract would have not been attractive to a bidder. The Directorate aimed for a minimum of a 15-20 % improvement of energy efficiency and environmental impact of this ferry in comparison to the previous conventional diesel ferry, which was procured and delivered in 2010. The resulting improvements are as follows: • kWh/PCUkm:37 % reduction • MJ/year: 60 % reduction • ton CO2 /year: 89 % reduction • kg NOx/year: 100 % reduction Cost-effectiveness The cost of this vessel was more expensive than a typical reference vessel. However, fuel cost per km is 70 % lower than for conventional diesel-electric ferries (€3.1/km for battery ferry compared to €10/km for a conventional diesel-electric ferry). It is important to notice that the fuel cost of this ferry is only 8 % of OPEX (operational expenditure) and 4 % of the total vessel cost for the battery driven ferry, while fuel cost for a conventional diesel-electric ferries is approximately 20-25 % of OPEX, which constitutes 15 % of the total vessel cost. In approving the National Budget for 2015, the Norwegian Parliament adopted the following decision: “The Government is requested by the Parliament, to ensure that requirements for zero-emission technology (and low-emission technology) are included in all future tenders for public ferries, when the technology allows for it.” Contact person for more information: Edvard Sandvik, Norwegian Public Roads Administration Edvard.sandvik@vegvesen.no