Solar panels for charging on Benjamin River.

This summer we received a Spark Grant from The Island Institute to help us install an off grid shore power system on our pier in Benjamin River. The system includes an 800 Watt solar array, and a Victron LiFePO4 battery bank and inverter charger in a weatherproof stainless steel box.

The grant also helped us replace our 15hp Gas outboard with an e-propulsion Navy 6.0kw electric outboard and a pair of 48V 9 Kw LiFePO4 batteries.

The electric skiff conversion and solar shore power went live in September, which happens to be the time of year our yard skiff sees the heaviest use. We are ferrying crew out to boats, downrigging, decommissioning, and pushing boats large and small onto trailers for haul out. We were very pleased to observe that the solar shorepower system kept up with our usage with plenty of power to spare.

In addition to charging our electric work skiff and our growing fleet of custom electric boats, having power on the dock will help us to employ shop tools on the pier for in the water repairs and more efficient commissioning.

Solar charging panel on Benjamin River.

We will be collecting data for the Island Institute on our power generation with the solar shorepower system and our power consumption with our electric work skiff. We are thrilled to participate in the Island Institutes efforts to bring more renewable energy production to the working waterfront. For remote locations, for self sufficiency, for climate resilience, for just plain good business. The possibilities are exciting.

Our deepest thanks and appreciation to the Island Institute for making this project possible. Thanks are also due to many of our usual partners in recent electric propulsion and maritime renewable power projects. You can find links to them at the bottom of the page.

If you think our solar shore power solution on Benjamin River could have applications on your pier or dock, for work or pleasure, please get in touch.