SPECIAL FEATURE Propulsion
Progressive Power A peek at nonconventional propulsion choices.
All American Marine
The Sea Change is powered by water-sourced hydrogen powering fuel cells that generate electricity to turn motors and charge batteries.
By Michael Crowley, Correspondent
A
Maid of the Mist
n indicator of the gathering momentum for cleaner burning, nontraditional forms of propulsion for the U.S. workboat industry can be found in WorkBoat’s Significant Boats of 2021. The list of 10 boats is selected annually by WorkBoat magazine’s editorial team. What’s unusual about the 10 Significant Boats of 2021 is that four of them have departed from traditional modes of propulsion. With two exceptions, The James V. Glynn, and its sister vessel Nikola Tesla, are outfitted with an integrated power and propulsion package from ABB, including lithium-ion it’s the first time in several years that WorkBoat’s battery packs and an onshore charging system. Significant Boats has included anything other than boats powered with traditional diesel engines or gas outboards. The 36'7"×12' Chief Potackee Betty Mae Tiger, named after The four “nontraditional boats” that were chosen last year the only female chief of Florida’s Seminola tribe, is a glass were the Chief Potackee Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, the Sea bottom tour boat with a capacity of 28 passengers that operChange, the Nikola Tesla and the James V. Glynn. ates out of Silver Springs State Park in Marion County, Fla. 20
www.workboat.com • MARCH 2022 • WorkBoat
