Follow along as our first electric tug navigates down the Pacific coast to its new home port in San Pedro Bay.
Pronounced “too - lee”
Download spec sheet47.661° N / 122.370° W
| # | Waypoint | NM | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Snow & Company | 0 | WA |
| 02 | Cape Flattery | +120 | WA |
| 03 | Columbia River Bar | +253 | WA |
| 04 | Golden Gate | +799 | CA |
| 05 | Point Conception | +1,032 | CA |
| 06 | Port of Long Beach | +1,165 | CA |
| # | NM | State | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Snow & Company | 0 | WA |
| 02 | Cape Flattery | +120 | WA |
| 03 | Columbia River Bar | +253 | WA |
Container ships aren’t designed to maneuver themselves into a tight harbor, so Tuuli C helps them navigate and dock.
Built in partnership with Snow & Co. and operated by Curtin Maritime, Tuuli C will serve the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
A ship-assist tug needs enormous power, but only in short bursts. A tugboat will spend a significant amount of time on standby or cruising at low speeds between pushes and pulls.
Where a traditional tug would keep its main engines running, wasting fuel and wearing down the engines, the electric propulsion system on Tuuli C draws only the power it needs.
The result is lower emissions and far fewer hours of mechanical wear.
Take a closer look at what went into Tuuli C.
Tuuli C has roughly a fifth of the moving parts compared to a diesel vessel in the same class. Fewer moving parts means fewer things that wear out. Plus, she runs a full shift on a single charge.
Tuuli C’s capacity:
The twin ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are the largest fixed source of smog-forming pollution in the region. Tugboats are among the largest contributors, despite being the smallest vessels in the harbor.
Tuuli C’s environmental impact:
Tuuli C's thrusters deliver 3 megawatts (MW) of power – over 4,000 horsepower. Her thrusters generate 110,000 pounds of force, giving her a “bollard pull” rating of 55 U.S. tons.
What 3MW looks like:
An electric tugboat moves massive container ships the second the captain hits the throttle. With more control and instant power, Tuuli C helps ships move through the port quickly and efficiently.
Tuuli C carries 6 megawatt-hours of battery storage across 30 racks and 210 battery modules. That’s the battery capacity of 100 electric cars.
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Harbor tugs run short, repetitive routes and need brief bursts of high power. Electric propulsion fits that work: instant torque when it counts and less maintenance overall. Between jobs, batteries can keep lights, radios, and other onboard systems running without a diesel generator. Those advantages add up with every shift.
Electric tugs are designed to lower the cost of ownership, with competitive build costs and savings in fuel, maintenance, and reduced downtime. There are no main diesel engines to keep idling while the propellers are stopped, and batteries can power onboard systems between jobs. Exact savings depend on the configuration and how you operate.
Reach out to commercial@arcboats.com and we will work through the numbers with you.
Yes. Matching diesel performance is a design requirement for our electric tug program. Each tug is sized for its ship-assist role, with the power and bollard pull the work requires.
Tuuli C is designed for a 12-hour working day of escorting and docking ships.
Every tug sends its data to a telemetry system in real time. That gives operators a live view of the fleet and each vessel’s performance.
No. Tuuli C can charge from industrial shore power already available at most tug docks. We also support operators who choose to install fast chargers to shorten charging time.
Compared to a conventional Tier 3 harbor tug, each electric tug cuts more than 1,400 tons of CO₂ and 14.5 tons of NOx a year. That's about the same as taking 300 passenger cars off the road.
A full charge takes about 3 hours using both Megawatt Charging System (MCS) inlets for DC fast charging. With 400-amp, 480-volt AC shore power, a full charge takes about 15-18 hours. Arc helps plan charging around your operating schedule.