Designing the Future of Low-Emission High-Speed Vessels

Why are Foil-Assisted Catamarans a Practical Path to Sustainable Marine Operations?

As the marine industry pushes toward low- and zero-emission operations, one thing has become clear: technology alone is not the solution. The most effective vessel designs start with a deep understanding of what the operation must achieve — day in, day out, in real operational conditions.

This belief is central to how ESS Marine operates. As Magnus Sørensen, Chief Operating Officer, puts it:

“The best sustainable solutions come from understanding upfront what the operation must actually achieve.”

At ESS Marine, this philosophy underpins our approach to next-generation high-speed vessels — especially through our work on the EnviroCAT foil-assisted catamaran concept, developed in close collaboration with EnviroInventions AS.

The Challenge: High Speed, Low Emissions, Real-World Reliability

Designing high-speed vessels of the future is not about chasing record-breaking performance. It is about creating efficient platforms that deliver speed, range, and payload capacity with significantly lower energy consumption, while remaining safe, robust, and commercially viable. These vessels must operate on a 24/7/365 basis, often transporting passengers and workforce crews. Reliability, durability, and safety are not optional — they are fundamental. Any higher upfront investment must therefore be justified through:

• Lower operating costs

• Reduced maintenance

• Less downtime

• Long service life

  
  

Why Foil-Assisted Catamarans?

Numerous concepts have emerged to reduce resistance and energy consumption, including:

• Surface Effect Ships (SES)

• Air lubrication systems

• Fully foiling vessels inspired by America’s Cup race boats

  
  

While impressive, many of these solutions falter with durability, robustness, and safety when applied to commercial operations. The foil-assisted catamaran strikes a crucial balance. Instead of lifting the vessel clear of the water, hydrofoils lift the vessel, reducing hull resistance while maintaining stable, predictable behaviour, and continuous water flow to the propulsion system.

How the EnviroCAT Concept Works

The EnviroCAT design uses hydrofoils to counteract the added weight of batteries and systems required for emission-free or hybrid propulsion.

Through careful analysis of:

• Vessel weight

• Dynamic forces at high speed

• Hull resistance versus foil lift and drag

• Air resistance

  
  

…they bring the vessel into an optimised “flying” waterline position. This dramatically reduces drag while ensuring that propulsion systems operate in clean, uninterrupted water flow — avoiding ventilation or air-suction issues.

This approach enables the use of proven propulsion systems, such as:

• Volvo Penta IPS drive units

• Designed controllable pitch propellers

  
  

The result is a solution that is not only efficient but also robust in operation and serviceable worldwide.

Safety and Durability by Design

Unlike fully foiling vessels, the foil-assist concept provides simplicity, reduces resistance, ease of operation, less complex systems and reduced risks.

Key design features include:

• A patented foil design with automatic adjustment of angle of attack, accommodating variations in loading and longitudinal centre of gravity.

• Foil materials engineered to withstand collisions with smaller floating objects.

• A break-off mechanism that allows foils to release safely in the event of impact with larger debris.

  
  

Even in such scenarios, the vessel remains operational and capable of proceeding to a safe harbour — a critical requirement for commercial service.

Engineering Backed by a Decade of Development

The team has developed the EnviroCAT range over nearly a decade, using:

• Advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis

• Extensive model testing with exact-scale physical models

• Full 3D vessel modelling in Siemens NX

  
  

This rigorous engineering process guarantees that we meet performance targets for:

• Weight

• Speed

• Power consumption

  
  

A Practical Path Toward Emission-Free High-Speed Operations, all EnviroCAT designs are available as:

• Fully electric vessels

• Hybrid configurations using electric and diesel (including biodiesel) systems

  
  

Compared to conventional diesel-driven high-speed ferries, energy consumption at high speed reduces by 30–50%, making emission-free operation commercially realistic, not just aspirational.

Engineering-Driven Sustainability

True sustainability in marine operations does not come from headline-grabbing concepts alone. It comes from engineering discipline, operational understanding, and pragmatic innovation. Foil-assisted catamarans represent that balance — and a credible pathway toward the next generation of high-speed, low-emission commercial vessels.

Interested in practical zero-emission vessel design? Contact us today. m.sorensen@essmarine.me