Cantwell Celebrates Launch of Pioneering Electric-Hybrid Research Vessel

09.05.24

Cantwell Celebrates Launch of Pioneering Electric-Hybrid Research Vessel

PNNL will use vessel for cutting-edge marine-based research, including assessing environmental impacts of renewable marine energy applications

SEQUIM, WA - Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, joined local leaders and elected officials at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) Sequim lab to celebrate the dedication of the RV Resilience, a first-of-its-kind electric-hybrid powered research vessel.

"Today is about a vision of pushing the envelope on R&D at the Energy Department's only marine lab," Sen. Cantwell said. "The Sequim lab is really a hidden treasure. I don't think a lot of people know about it, even within the State of Washington -- working on discoveries that [may] one day turn algae into biofuels, or better protecting our beloved coastlines where 40% of our population lives by monitoring things like eel grass beds and studying ocean acidification, and helping secure renewable marine energy from natural movements of the ocean, like tides, waves and currents."

"Today's dedication of the RV Resilience will help enhance and expedite that critical research mission. This is a first-of-its-kind [DOE] electric hybrid vessel," Sen. Cantwell said.

The all-aluminum, 50-foot Resilience is the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s first research vessel of its size that can run on either electric or diesel power. When powered just by electricity, the catamaran is nearly silent and emissions-free, allowing it to collect valuable data without disturbing surrounding wildlife. Snow & Company, a shipbuilder based in Seattle, Washington, built the RV Resilience.

PNNL scientists will use Resilience to study the environmental impacts of harnessing marine energy. Marine energy from the natural movement of ocean tides, waves, and currents has the potential to produce clean, renewable, and predictable electricity. The power source is also located near coastlines, where more than 40% of the nation's population lives. The research conducted by Resilience will help scientists determine which technologies will be environmentally safe and most valuable to our nation's electricity grid, as well as how to deploy them.

In addition to researching marine energy, PNNL scientists will also use Resilience to study coastal environments and ocean-based carbon dioxide removal, as well as ways to decarbonize marine transportation.

Sen. Cantwell has consistently advocated for increased funding for DOE's Powering the Blue Economy initiative, which provided a $4.55 million competitive infrastructure grant to help build the Resilience, allocated from the fiscal year 2021 appropriation for the Energy Department's Water Power Technologies Office.

As a senior member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Sen. Cantwell has been a steadfast supporter of PNNL and a champion of the lab's leading-edge research, including at the PNNL-Sequim campus that houses the only marine research facilities in the Department of Energy complex. Last month, she visited PNNL's main campus in Richland to celebrate the dedication of the new Grid Storage Launchpad, which will help accelerate the R&D pipeline of grid-scale energy storage technologies and identify solutions to make America's power grid more resilient.

Scientists at PNNL are generating world-class research with important applications. As Jud Virden, PNNL's Associate Laboratory Director for the Energy and Environment Directorate, has noted, PNNL's experts are among the top 1% of highly-cited scientists in the world, have over 188 patents in process, and have developed 24 technologies licensed to U.S. industry and going out to the market.

Video of Sen. Cantwell delivering remarks is HERE and formally christening Resilience is HERE; photos of today's event are HERE.

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