DOST launches PH’s first solar-powered e-ferry

An e-ferry sailing down the Pasig River? You bet.

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) on Monday launched the country’s first locally developed electric ferry, which will sail along the Pasig River.

Named M/B Dalaray, which means “flow and current,” the e-ferry is expected to help reduce traffic, the transport industry’s dependence on fuel, and reduce risk of oil spills and pollution in waterways.

It can carry up to 40 passengers along with three crew members or 5 tons of loaded weight.M/B Dalaray is a Battery-Electric Catamaran Passenger Ferry, which uses Lithium-ion batteries and solar panels to operate. It has zero direct emissions, which makes it an important step in the fight against climate change.

The main cause of climate change is the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, at gas to produce energy and for transportation. In Paris 2015, the world agreed to limit warming to 1.5C. At the moment, experts have pegged warming at 1.1C. Switching to renewables and electric vehicles like M/B Dalary can definitely help.

In a statement, DOST Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development said “The M/B Dalaray stands as a milestone in the country’s move toward green, efficient, and locally made maritime transport solutions." 

The energy costs of the M/B Dalaray clock in at P45/kilometer, clearly cheaper than current diesel ferry's P130/kilometer. 

With P54 million in funding under the DOST, the ferry project was headed by Dr. Lew Andrew Tria of UP Diliman’s Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute. — Mariel Celine Serquiña/LA, GMA Integrated News