Scandinavia leads wave of electric ferries

Rødne Trafikk has taken delivery of a new fully electric combi-catamaran, adding to Scandinavia’s growing fleet of battery-powered ferries.

Norwegian operator Rødne Trafikk has taken delivery of M/S Rygerlys, a new fully electric 46m combi-catamaran built by Oma Baatbyggeri at its yard in Stord.

The vessel was handed over on 4 September and will operate between Lauvik and Lysebotn under a 10-year contract with Rogaland county’s public transport company, Kolumbus.

With a service speed of 19 knots, Rygerlys can carry up to 97 passengers as well as cars, trucks and other cargo. Its fully electric propulsion system is designed to allow zero-emission operation throughout the route.

The vessel is now undergoing commissioning at Forsand, where its charging infrastructure and the wharves at Forsand and Lysebotn will be tested before it enters service.

Rygerlys is the latest addition to a Scandinavian electric-ferry sector that has moved well beyond the demonstration stage.

Norway has been at the forefront. MF Ampere, which entered service in 2015, was the world’s first electric car ferry and continues to operate daily across the Sognefjord.

Norway is also home to Medstraum, described by Norwegian shipyard and ship designer Fjellstrand as the world’s first fully battery-electric fast ferry. The 23-knot passenger vessel operates from Stavanger using electricity from the grid as its sole energy source.

The scale of Norway’s adoption is now significant. Business Norway says that by August 2026, 111 electric car and passenger ferries had entered service in the country.

Denmark has also been an early adopter. E/F Ellen, which entered service in 2019, was the world’s first long-range pure-electric ferry and operates between Søby on Ærø and Fynshav on Als. Its battery system is now being replaced as the vessel enters its second phase of electric operation.

Conversions

Across the Øresund, Aurora and Tycho Brahe have operated on battery technology supplied by ABB between Helsingør and Helsingborg since 2018. The two large ferries were converted from conventional diesel propulsion and operate on one of Scandinavia’s busiest short-sea ferry routes and ABB touted this is a demonstration that electrification does not need to be restricted to newbuilds.

The latest addition to that route is Hamlet, which was converted from diesel-electric propulsion to battery operation in 2025-26, giving Øresundslinjen three electric passenger ferries.

The technology is also spreading to newbuilds. Denmark’s Samsølinjen has introduced the electric Tyrfing on its Kalundborg-Ballen service, while a new fully electric ferry, Nerthus, entered service in the Sønderborg area in 2026.

For Rødne, Rygerlys represents another step in the electrification of Norway’s coastal public transport network. For the wider Scandinavian ferry sector, it is further evidence that battery-electric propulsion has become an operational reality on an increasing range of passenger and car-ferry routes.