The electric inland ship Alphenaar today sailed its maiden voyage, from Alphen aan den Rijn to Moerdijk in the Netherlands, for Dutch beer giant Heineken. The Alphenaar is the first electric inland shipping vessel in the Netherlands to launch – and it uses swappable batteries.

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In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Walmart’s maritime shipping caused more pollution in 2019 than a coal-fired plant emits annually.
• A solar company sues the Department of the Interior over offshore wind farm approval.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

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Some of the world’s largest cargo ships emit pollution comparable to millions of passenger cars put together. The heavy fuel oil that they burn has high sulfur content and therefore, it is an important part of the world’s transportation industry that needs to transition to being battery-powered.

Norway is making a first significant step toward just that with Kongsberg, a maritime engineering firm, and Yara International ASA, a large Norwegian chemical company, unveiling the concept for a new all-electric and autonomous cargo ship that they plan to have in operation as soon as next year. expand full story