Two recently delivered electric sightseeing vessels have commenced operational sailings in Russia's Vologda Region.
Vologda Dawns (Вологодские зори; Vologodskiye Zori) and Vologzhanin (Вологжанин; Russian for “resident of Vologda”) belong to the Project EM2108 series of open-air, electric vessels for inner city excursions. Construction was undertaken by local shipyard Emperium.
The newbuilds utilise the same design as that of an earlier series of vessels but with modifications including electric propulsion to permit operation in urban areas. The newer vessels also each boast around 90 per cent domestic content and a more ergonomic layout.
The vessels each have all-steel construction, an LOA of 16.5 metres, a beam of four metres, a draught of only 0.8 metre, and space for up to 40 passengers in addition to two crewmembers. A low height enables each vessel to pass underneath bridges while the narrow beam and the shallow draught permit safe transit through many canals.
The electric propulsion setup on each vessel consists of a 560Ah battery driving an 80kW electric motor. This arrangement is capable of whole-day operation at a service speed of seven knots on a single full charge of the battery, though a maximum speed of over eight knots is possible.
Vologda Dawns and Vologzhanin were designed in compliance with Russian Classification Society requirements.