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Environment: the Vedettes de Paris are electrifying
Environment: the Vedettes de Paris are electrifying – (France 2)
As part of the “A gesture for the Earth” section, the 13 Heures is interested in the electrification of the Vedettes de Paris, these boats which sail on the Seine to show tourists the landscapes of the capital.
On the Seine, the “Paris Trocadéro” speedboat sails silently thanks to its electric motors. The decision to move on to 100% electricity was first taken to address the climate emergency. The boats of the company “Vedettes de Paris” consumed 500,000 liters of fuel oil per year. “Five boats with diesel engines, which for 25 years have been emitting greenhouse gases quite considerably. It has to stop”, says Vincent Delteildeputy general director of “Vedettes de Paris”.
An investment of 12 million euros
The “Paris Trocadéro” Vedette is recharged at night and each time passengers disembark. It is on a shipyard in Villeneuve-la-Garenne (Hauts-de-Seine) that the boats are transformed. Two are currently at the dock. The very first batteries were charged on Tuesday January 30. Around fifty batteries are installed. Work that lasts between six months and a year, because the hulls are also transformed to improve penetration into the water. An investment of 12 million euros amortized over eight years.
