Electrifying the Port of Halifax: a how-to guide

A local software data company works to help vessel owners, ports, and utilities figure out the hows and how-to’s involved with embracing vessel electrification, and what’s needed to support any move in that direction.

BlueGrid’s successful demonstration of the world’s first high-power vessel-to grid event - which took place in May 2024 in the Halifax Harbour. Photo courtesy of BlueGrid Energy.

Bedford, Nova Scotia native, Andrew Boswell knows part of becoming a greener city is the electrification of our port’s working and government vessels.

The CEO of Halifax-based BlueGrid says the driving force behind what he does comes from his sailing background and love of the ocean.

“My personal interest has been around anything that floats, basically. And it’s the first time in my career where my personal interest [in all things] marine has converged with my work life,”  Boswell says.

Boswell, a self-described data and tech guy, says he and co-founder, Trevor Hennigar, were a complimentary match for the idea behind BlueGrid.

“I’ve spent my career in some aspects of information, technology, management, and telecommunications, and Trevor’s background is on the electricity and e-mobility side. He’s an energy expert who’s been deeply involved in renewable energy for years,” he says.

Recent recipients of the Halifax Climate Investment, Innovation, and Impact Fund (HCi3), the HCi3 site cites awarding the grant as a way to support BlueGrid’s “…latest initiative, (that) builds on previous work with Halifax Transit ferries and will capture real-time energy and emissions data from 25 diverse vessels.”

BlueGrid, a software data company, helps provide information to clients — like the Port of Halifax — for marine electrification transition plans through AI-informed energy simulation. In this instance they’ll be looking at a cross-section of 25 vessels out of over 100 which call the Port of Halifax home, and providing the port with crucial information regarding how those vessels — everything from Coast Guard vessels to fishing and tug boats — are using energy, have plans to go hybrid or electric, and what is needed to facilitate those future transitions. 

And that facilitation, says Boswell, is an essential piece of the puzzle for vessels considering the move to electric or hybrid.

“When you think about what’s required to accelerate marine electrification, obviously the boats have to go electric or hybrid, but the grid needs to be in place to support that,” he says.

In the case of new electric or hybrid purchases the charger is typically part of the package, as is the case for retrofits — instances where vessels choose updating over a new purchase.

And as well as ports and utilities needing this crucial data in order to best accommodate upcoming shoreside changes and demands on the electrical grid, is the data for the vessel owners themselves: ultimately, the how’s and how much of going electric or hybrid.

“The second piece of the [data] puzzle is once a vessel or fleet owner decide to go electric or hybrid, we’ve been helping them interact with the grid in the smartest way possible,” Boswell says.

That “smartest” way to charge is to avoid peak energy times and the highest energy rates. It’s also about how they can use their vessel batteries as storage for the electric grid, and how they can gain financially from providing that storage and access.

In the years to come, access to clean energy won’t be as big an issue as storage; think thousands of wind turbines and solar panels throughout the province. Boswell says this is where vessel owners can really see financial return from the typically high front-loaded investment cost of electrification — much like an EV driver, where you pay a higher purchase price but reap the financial benefits (and peace of mind) throughout the life of the vehicle.

Prices are also coming down, says Boswell, thanks to increased interest internationally.

“What we’re seeing on land is what we’re seeing in marine as well, where the premium is becoming less every year because of [a lowering of] the price of batteries, as the volume builds, so the ‘green premium’ is definitely shrinking,” he says.

And the reasons to go electric or hybrid are myriad, says Boswell, with a better experience on the vessel and also as a result of a changing world where customers increasingly care about supporting green industries.

“If you’re in the tourism business, people prefer going out on vessels that are quiet, even more so if you’re in ecotourism,” he says. “And a sustainable fishery is increasingly important to some of our customers, especially in the European market.”

Ultimately, going electric or hybrid is a serious investment so what are the possible financial benefits? Well, according to Boswell, pretty high, but only if we get a program in place to facilitate the huge possibilities inherent in bi-directional charging, in other words, drawing from the grid, storing, then allowing the grid to draw back from your battery.

“We have almost 5,000 fishing boats in the province, and if you look at a typical 42-ft. fishing boat like the ones being built by Membertou, who we’re working with, that boat has a sizeable battery, and if there was a program in place, like in other parts of the world, they would make over $10,000 a year from their vessel battery,” Boswell says.

And if you’re wondering if it can successfully be done, well the answer is yes. In 2024, BlueGrid, along with its partners, had its first high-power vessel-to-grid (V2G) demonstration that did indeed show that the high-speed bi-directional charging works, and works well, which is good news for not just BlueGrid, but for the planet as a whole, something Boswell wholeheartedly agrees with.

“There are some seventeen and a half million conventionally powered vessels in Canada, the US, and Europe, so the potential for real change in lowering carbon emissions is huge, and ultimately helps get us to a place where we can have bluer oceans and a greener energy future, and for me that’s a banner day.”

Climate Stories Atlantic is an initiative of Climate Focus, a non-profit organization dedicated to covering stories about community-driven climate solutions.

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