Innovation Winter 2025/26

E ach day across the Port of Vancouver, a pair of modest yellow-and-blue tugboats glide through the harbour, maneuvering vessels weighing up to 70,000 tons. At first glance, they appear no different from the other workhorses of the waterfront. Beneath the deck, however, is a significant technological shift; these are among the world’s first fully electric harbour tugs, eliminating an estimated 2,400 tonnes of CO 2 emissions per boat annually. That's equivalent to the emissions from about 560 cars. Operated by SAAM Towage on behalf of Neptune Terminals in North Vancouver, the vessels represent a new generation of zero-emission tugboats redefining short-haul marine operations. Both were conceived and engineered by Robert Allan Ltd. (RAL), a Vancouver-based naval architecture firm that has carved out a globally recognized niche in low-emission tugboat design.

Innovation Winter 2025/26

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