{"id":263774,"date":"2026-02-02T10:54:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T10:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/263774\/"},"modified":"2026-02-02T10:54:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T10:54:12","slug":"on-the-up-electric-boats-by-whangarei-firm-transform-transport-in-samoa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/263774\/","title":{"rendered":"On the Up: Electric boats by Whang\u0101rei firm transform transport in Samoa"},"content":{"rendered":"

They are able to run continuously for up to seven hours at a cruising speed of 6 knots<\/a>, with a range of more than 50 nautical miles on a single charge in overcast conditions, with onboard solar panels providing greater range on sunnier days.<\/p>\n

Having been in use since October 2025, the impact of the new electric vessels is already being felt. With no fuel cost, lower operating costs and smooth operation<\/a>, the vessels have removed many of the pressures associated with marine transport in the remote islands.<\/p>\n

The services and businesses in Namu\u2019a have already changed the way they operate, said Levasa Ieti Taisia, director of the Namu\u2019a Island site.<\/p>\n

He described the boats as \u201ca blessing from God\u201d, explaining they have brought him and his community a great sense of ease and reliability that did not exist before.<\/p>\n

Previously, a reliance on scarce fuel created logistical challenges, such as a need to wait until the boats are full before travelling.<\/p>\n

Taisia said it was also essential for the island community to protect the environment, and the electric boats ticked all the boxes.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe E-Alia made by McKay have been celebrated in the Samoan communities of Manono and Namu\u2019a, providing reliability and environmental protection thanks to not needing fuel.<\/p>\n

The vessels will be primarily used to support village life, providing essential transport for people, goods and community events, including family gatherings and funeral processions. <\/p>\n

As part of the contract, McKay has also delivered training on boat operation and maintenance<\/a>, and will provide maintenance support for two years in partnership with Henry Silva Shipyard.<\/p>\n

McKay national marine manager Ben Haselden said the project has been positive, with a milestone ceremonial handover on December 12, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis milestone with Project E-Alia not only enhances McKay\u2019s capacity to deliver marine-based renewable solutions across New Zealand and the Pacific, but also sets a new benchmark for sustainable, community-focused transport in the region, bringing technology to an area that didn\u2019t realise they needed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

McKay, New Zealand\u2019s largest privately owned electrotechnology company, has more than 50 years\u2019 experience delivering projects across the Pacific, from airport infrastructure to government buildings.<\/p>\n

It hopes to expand its work across the Pacific and beyond, including advancing sustainable electric propulsion for vessels.<\/p>\n

Denise Piper is a news reporter<\/a> for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"They are able to run continuously for up to seven hours at a cruising speed of 6 knots,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":263775,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[38602,3595,40750,1656,11662,14037,1138,1342,28828,78,794,1362,1446,111,43,139,1067,69,90,5902,20153,223,34367,112,810,1869,377],"class_list":["post-263774","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-boats","tag-by","tag-communities","tag-company","tag-difference","tag-electric","tag-firm","tag-five","tag-fleet","tag-in","tag-isolated","tag-made","tag-making","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-northland","tag-nz","tag-on","tag-samoa","tag-samoan","tag-the","tag-transform","tag-transport","tag-up","tag-whangrei","tag-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=263774"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263774\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/263775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=263774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=263774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=263774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}