Oxis and YdL to integrate Li-S battery in luxury yacht

Yachts de Luxe (YdL) from Singapore wants to build the world’s first luxury boat with lithium-sulfur battery technology and against this background has signed a contract with the Li-S specialist Oxis Energy. Williams Advanced Engineering is also on board as project partner.

The planned 12-meter boat will be equipped with a 400-kWh battery system and will have a range of 70 to 100 nautical miles (130 to 185 kilometers). Further technical details are not yet available.

While Oxis will produce the cells based on Li-S chemistry, Williams Advanced Engineering will be responsible for the design and manufacture of the cell modules and battery management system. The electrified luxury ship is scheduled to be on display at the Monaco Boat Show in September 2021. The cooperation between YdL and Oxis is based on a ten-year contract worth five million dollars.

“With the highly promising Li-S technology developed by OXIS Energy, we have the perfect match between high power, safety and eco friendliness,” says Jean Jacques Coste, Director of YdL. And for Oxis, he added, he is an important partner in its entry into the naval world: “This is the starting point of numerous projects including service boats and our Mega Yachts”. Oxis CEO Huw Hampson-Jones recalls that it was only in August that Oxis succeeded in using Li-S cell technology to power an aircraft for almost two hours in the air. “Our intention is to achieve the same level of success in maritime applications.”

Li-S specialist Oxis, with its niche know-how, is a welcome cooperation partner for hydrogen projects. For example, Oxis Energy is a key player in the European project LISA (Lithium Sulfur for Safe Road Electrification), which will be launched in early 2019, and also leads the Lithium Sulfur Future Automotive Battery (LiSFAB) project, funded by Innovate UK, to commercialize sulfur-lithium technology for large electric vehicles. Most recently, the British agreed on two development partnerships in the aviation sector, one with Texas Aircraft Manufacturing and another with Bye Aerospace.

In contrast to other lithium metal batteries, Li-S cells have the advantage that they can be operated at room temperature and that they achieve higher energy densities at moderate costs. However, a commercial breakthrough has so far failed to materialize, as previous Li-S cells lose storage capacity after just a few charging cycles. Internationally, research on lithium sulfur cells is increasing, including at DLR.

oxisenergy.com (PDF)