Electric hydrofoil ferry tests pushed back in Orkney amid months of delays

An electric hydrofoil passenger boat is due to begin testing in Orkney next month after the original arrival dates of January and March came and went.

The small vessel, along with another 50-passenger boat, is due to be trialed in the isles county after a successful £15.5m bid was made to the UK Government’s Zero Emission Vessel and Infrastructure (ZEVI) Fund.

That bid came from Orkney Islands Council-run Orkney Ferries Ltd, Belfast-based Artemis Technologies, and the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC).

Dubbed the Electric Orkney project, the aim is to boost the council’s decarbonisation efforts.

The smaller of the two vessels is due to arrive ahead of the larger one.

Before it can start ferrying passengers between Rousay, Egilsay, Wyre, Shapinsay, and the Orkney mainland, it needs to undergo sea trials.

Following the nearly four-month delay, a team from Orkney will be down with Artemis Technologies in Belfast next week

A spokeswoman for the company said the visit will include sea trials and “final acceptance” of the vessel.

It’s then expected that the boat will arrive in Orkney “within a matter of weeks.”

The spokesman said: “With the nature of this type of project and the groundbreaking technology involved, small, not uncommon delays have occurred as efforts to ensure all processes are correct and complete at each milestone are prioritised.”

The project presents an exciting, speedy, and cutting-edge way for Orcadians to get around the islands.

The hydrofoil technology means the hulls of the vessels will be lifted completely out of the water when they sail.

The hope is that the new vessel could bolster the existing council-run ferry service permanently.

However, this will depend on how much they are used during the three-year trial

The council has been asking the communities on the islands how they might use the additional service.

The Rousay, Egilsay, and Wyre Development Trust is a development organisation run by the islanders for the benefit of the 260 people who live on the three islands.

Its chairman, Peter Roebuck, told the LDR service the communities will welcome the hydrofoil vessels.

However, there are still questions and concerns about how they will operate.

The project must also not distract from the need to replace Orkney’s aging fleet of roll-on, roll-off ferries (Ro-Ro), he says.

Mr Roebuck said: “Our communities welcome the opportunity to stay at the cutting edge of renewable technology in trialling these boats.

“There is a combination of enthusiasm for the potential to improve connectivity between our islands and Mainland Orkney, together with some trepidation about their reliability.

“Also, there is real concern about the impact these boats may have on further extending the timetable for replacing our outdated and aging Ro-Ro ferry.

“The continuing five-year delay on Orkney Harbours Masterplan Phase 2 continues to concern our communities about how and when our Ro-Ro will be replaced.

“So far, we have seen no sign of how passengers will locally embark or disembark these electric hydrofoils at all stages of the tide, nor how the boat will be recharged at terminals outside Kirkwall.

“We look forward to hearing more about when the trial will start, having seen no evidence of the necessary infrastructure being in place for them to start in the coming months.”