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Installation of new electric boat charging bollards


Alan de Enfield

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WAKE UP C&RT

 

 

 

New electric charging stations for boats in Plymouth - BBC News

 

A series of quayside electric charging stations for boats have been unveiled.

A number of facilities have been switched on along the perimeter of the Plymouth Sound National Marine Park.

The charging stations will mean electric-powered boats and ships will be able to charge their batteries at three locations in the city.

It is in response to the Government's Clean Maritime Plan which aims to tackle air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.

Battery-powered boats are starting to be seen more regularly on the water with an electric ferry launched in Plymouth in 2020.

The new stations are at Mount Batten, Queen Anne's Battery and the Barbican landing stage.

'Game-changer'

More installations are being developed along the city's waterfront as well as sites being identified in Devon and Cornwall.

The charging network has been created through the Marine e-Charging Living Lab (MeLL) initiative, a consortium led by the University of Plymouth.

It is in partnership with Plymouth City Council, Princess Yachts Limited and Aqua superPower.

Sarah Fear, project and knowledge exchange manager at the University of Plymouth and lead for the MeLL project, said: "This charging network is a game-changer for Plymouth's forward-thinking marine enterprises, and our ongoing research in this field is enabling the city and region to blaze a trail in clean maritime innovation."

 

A photo of a charging station

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Why wake up CRT...?  That article you linked to says it is a partnership with Plymouth City Council, Princess Yachts Limited and Aqua superPower so surely all the local councils, marina operators and boat builders should be funding canal side charging points.

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based on my experience on the Thames - there needs to be a punitive charge for anyone over-staying while moored up at the electric pillar. 

 

As an electric powered boater I resent a large gin palace being moored up at the pillar for days on end, especially when the owner is not present so he can't be encouraged to move on.   One particular culprit told me that he and his missus had planned their cruise for the following year and already "booked" electric mooring points along the route journey, expecting to spend a couple of days or more at each.  When I queried why a 50ft well-appointed luxury GRP cruiser needed a mains supply he responded that his missus couldn't be bothered with planning the use of the washing machine and the immersion heater, and she wouldn't accompany him if she didn't have all the conveniences of home.

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10 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

Why wake up CRT...?  That article you linked to says it is a partnership with Plymouth City Council, Princess Yachts Limited and Aqua superPower so surely all the local councils, marina operators and boat builders should be funding canal side charging points.

 

It is a JV between the council and the bollard/charger provider - if C&RT wake up and get in quickly maybe thay can do a similar deal - the bollard provider installs and C&RT charge the boater, paying the provider a percentage.

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3 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

Why wake up CRT...?  That article you linked to says it is a partnership with Plymouth City Council, Princess Yachts Limited and Aqua superPower so surely all the local councils, marina operators and boat builders should be funding canal side charging points.

Yes, its a shame that the same amount of money isnt swishing about on the inland waterways as there is in locations such as this. A friend of ours has a Princess, he bought it new from them last year, its the second new one he has owned, my lad is away on it this weekend as its the friends birthday bash. The boat was the best part of two million and definately not electric propulsion!! When he tops the fuel tanks up it costs several thousand pounds lol. Princess are doing very well and helping out on schemes like this will be much easier for them than some narrowboat builder scraping a living. The problem mainly on the inland waterways is the boat licence is way too cheap to keep the system in good order, let alone putting electric points in.

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Stoppage notice that came out today

 

Quote

Notice Alert

Oxford Canal
Location: Mooring Suspension, Between Bridge 164, and Bridge 164A, Oxford Canal
Starts At: Bridge 164, Tom Rolt Bridge
Ends At: Bridge 164A, Footbridge

Sunday 5 June 2022 08:00 until Friday 8 July 2022 17:00

Type: Advice 
Reason: 3rd Party Works


 

Original message:

 

Please be advised, due to the installation of 3 charging points, the moorings will be suspended between bridge 164, and bridge 164A on the Oxford Canal.

 

You can view this notice and its map online here:
https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/notice/22132/mooring-suspension-between-bridge-164-and-bridge-164a-oxford-canal

You can find all notices at the url below:
https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/notices


Please do not reply to the email. It has been automatically generated.

To unsubscribe from this service please go to: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/my-trust/notices and uncheck the relevant box.

open.php?u=10513099&id=1695d0f5629d46aa8b1ecea5ccb6989e

 

 

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I've said before that a basis of an inland electric boat charging network could be started in conjunction with the hire fleet owners. Place charging bollards around common cruising rings and routes, part paid for by the hire boat owners. As their fleet of boats turns over, build many of the new ones with electric drive. Have a proportion of hybrid boats still for hirers that are planning to go off-piste on the network to places with no charging points yet. Part fund the bollards through some of the hire companies savings in diesel and engine oil. A differentiator for hirers too. Silent boating and a more green holiday. The bollards are then available for private boaters too. Every one wins.

So far, just the sound of crickets from CaRT on this subject.

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I would love to know why all of a sudden electric bollard’s are now being re-branded to charging points?

 Do people think by calling electric bollards something like “Eco Boat Recharging Stations” CaRT/Hire companies/Private energy companies will install hundreds along the canal system?

  Why do boaters that have just spent £200k plus on a brand new electric engine boat, with a massive Lithium battery bank, a roof full of solar panels and a Kohler 200Kva generator, need re-charging stations. I thought that was the point of all the panels and generator?

 

Edited by PD1964
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11 minutes ago, PD1964 said:

I would love to know why all of a sudden electric bollard’s are now being re-branded to charging points?

 

I think that you are not comparing oranges with oranges, a bollard with a maximun 16 amps supply is not the same as a BEV charging pod which can be up to 80 amps per output and requires a 3-phase supply. The standard 16 amp bollards are normally single-phase.

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4 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

I think that you are not comparing oranges with oranges, a bollard with a maximun 16 amps supply is not the same as a BEV charging pod which can be up to 80 amps per output and requires a 3-phase supply. The standard 16 amp bollards are normally single-phase.

Indeed. For EV charging points you can expect anything up to 350A (maybe more).

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12 minutes ago, George and Dragon said:

Indeed. For EV charging points you can expect anything up to 350A (maybe more).

 

 

Charging point type and power output per socket Energy supply capacity needed per charge point
3.7kW AC 16 amps AC single phase
7kW AC 32 amps AC single phase
11kW AC 32 amps AC three phase
22kW AC 63 amps AC three phase
25kW DC 63 amps AC three phase
50kW DC 100 amp AC three phase
75kW DC 150 amp AC three phase
150kW DC 200 amp AC three phase

 

 

How fast will your electric vehicle charge (electriccarchargersuk.co.uk)

Edited by Alan de Enfield
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25 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

I think that you are not comparing oranges with oranges, a bollard with a maximun 16 amps supply is not the same as a BEV charging pod which can be up to 80 amps per output and requires a 3-phase supply. The standard 16 amp bollards are normally single-phase.

Yes, but do narrowboats need 3 phase fast charging like cars? More electric bollards on visitor moorings would be more beneficial to the whole system and to more boaters.

Edited by PD1964
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C&RT could possibly get the infrastructure installed at no charge to to them. They are installing charger units FoC at hotel chains ............

 

 

How does it work?

We simply cover the cost for the supply and installation of the charging solution which your hotel will enjoy the exclusive use of.  There will be no costs incurred by the hotel.

  • All costs are covered for the supply and installation
  • We manage and maintain the units at no cost to the hotel
  • We share the profits once the chargers reach an agreed level of utilisation

We install reliable and robust EV charge point manufacturers so you can be confident that the charging unit will always be in use and therefore not impacting your hotel and customers.

All of the customer payments are made through on online payment service and the charging costs are transparent and agreed with the hotel.

Would you like fully funded and managed EV chargers for your hotel?

Please contact ECC UK to find out more information on how to apply for a fully funded EV charging solution for your hotel.

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Is there really a need for 3 phase super fast charging stations on the canal?

 The new electric £250k plus boats I’m seeing being built can get away without them. They have big Lithium battery amperage and enough solar and generator Kva to recharge the battery bank in a few hours.

Edited by PD1964
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So, am I the only one thinking ...

"I don't want to tie up where I'm told to, I stop in the middle of nowhere when I want."

 

However as I have no TV on board I can imagine the entertainment from about 4pm when everyone starts turning up to grab a bollard.  There's always one N08 H3AD that'll want to take charge and start ordering everyone around by boat length so we can get another one near a bollard.

Then in the morning there'll be a race to get off to make sure we get to the next charge point in time.

No, not for me.

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18 minutes ago, zenataomm said:

So, am I the only one thinking ...

"I don't want to tie up where I'm told to, I stop in the middle of nowhere when I want."

 

However as I have no TV on board I can imagine the entertainment from about 4pm when everyone starts turning up to grab a bollard.  There's always one N08 H3AD that'll want to take charge and start ordering everyone around by boat length so we can get another one near a bollard.

Then in the morning there'll be a race to get off to make sure we get to the next charge point in time.

No, not for me.

Maybe I’m old school, I still have a Diesel engine, never stay long in places, move enough to recharge my batteries and have never needed to plug into a Bollard when out cruising. Are the new generation that despite for fast charging bollards every day to plug their new electric boats in?

Edited by PD1964
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I remember that a hire company introduced some electric boats more than a decade ago. What put me off then was the fact that you could only charge at boatyards, which limited your itinery and meant spending nights at boatyards to charge. 

 

On a practical point, installing chargers in  ports should be relatively straightforward as there will already be a high power mains supply available. .  Ditto hotels, which will normally have a  mains  supply with enough capacity for battery charging, especially for overnight  charging. 

 

Easy enough to install chargers at canal locations where there is ready access to an existing  mains  supply of adequate capacity,  but providing new or uprated mains supplies to rural locations, while technically possible, will not come cheap.  

 

 

 

Edited by Ronaldo47
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10 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

Charging point type and power output per socket Energy supply capacity needed per charge point
3.7kW AC 16 amps AC single phase
7kW AC 32 amps AC single phase
11kW AC 32 amps AC three phase
22kW AC 63 amps AC three phase
25kW DC 63 amps AC three phase
50kW DC 100 amp AC three phase
75kW DC 150 amp AC three phase
150kW DC 200 amp AC three phase

 

 

How fast will your electric vehicle charge (electriccarchargersuk.co.uk)

 I would say there is more need for offshore fast charge stations then Canal fast charge.

  With offshore you can travel further in a shorter period, say a quick day trip to Plymouth from Dartmouth, where fast charge would be needed. Far more necessary then a slow leisurely trip down the canal for a couple of hours, where the boats solar/generator could cope with battery recharging.

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11 hours ago, PD1964 said:

I would love to know why all of a sudden electric bollard’s are now being re-branded to charging points?

 Do people think by calling electric bollards something like “Eco Boat Recharging Stations” CaRT/Hire companies/Private energy companies will install hundreds along the canal system?

  Why do boaters that have just spent £200k plus on a brand new electric engine boat, with a massive Lithium battery bank, a roof full of solar panels and a Kohler 200Kva generator, need re-charging stations. I thought that was the point of all the panels and generator?

 

So they dont run their 200Kva generator

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23 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

So they dont run their 200Kva generator

Yes of course. Maybe they don’t want to be in a line of boats every night recharging. They can run it while moving when no sun, so no need to disturb the neighbours. sort of defeats the object of no engine though.

 Is there any need for 3 phase super quick EV charging stations on the canals?

  

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1 minute ago, PD1964 said:

 Is there any need for 3 phase super quick EV charging stations on the canals?

Some day we may not be allowed to use diesel engines or generators on our boats. So they will have to be all-electric. And that means chargers all over the system. Someone has got to start installing them sometime, otherwise the transition from diesel to electric won't happen.

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27 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Some day we may not be allowed to use diesel engines or generators on our boats. So they will have to be all-electric. And that means chargers all over the system. Someone has got to start installing them sometime, otherwise the transition from diesel to electric won't happen.

How many years away is that? Do you think that the thousands of diesel boats already on the canal will be forced to change their engines to electric engines and lithium batteries with fast charging electrical systems, costing many thousands of pounds?

 CaRT seam to be struggling keeping the system navigable now with their funding, never mind being able to fill their canal infrastructure with enough fast charging stations in the future.  

Edited by PD1964
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17 hours ago, Murflynn said:

based on my experience on the Thames - there needs to be a punitive charge for anyone over-staying while moored up at the electric pillar. 

 

As an electric powered boater I resent a large gin palace being moored up at the pillar for days on end, especially when the owner is not present so he can't be encouraged to move on.   One particular culprit told me that he and his missus had planned their cruise for the following year and already "booked" electric mooring points along the route journey, expecting to spend a couple of days or more at each.  When I queried why a 50ft well-appointed luxury GRP cruiser needed a mains supply he responded that his missus couldn't be bothered with planning the use of the washing machine and the immersion heater, and she wouldn't accompany him if she didn't have all the conveniences of home.

So you wouldn't resent a  narrowboat doing the same thing?

 

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