An aerial drone photo taken on Jan. 24, 2024 shows a cargo ship docking at the Meishan port area of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in east China's Zhejiang Province. [Photo/Xinhua]

A Chinese shipyard has started construction of the world's largest ten-thousand-tonne-class fully-electric open-top container ships, the Science and Technology Daily reported on Wednesday.

The two intelligent container ships, each with a capacity of about 740 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), are currently being constructed in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangxi.

The building of electric ocean-going vessels heralds the dawn of a zero-emission era for China's maritime transport sector. It came after the country pledged to peak its carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.

Now, China's container throughput ranks first globally, and its international maritime transport volume accounted for nearly one-third of the global total in 2023.

The cargo ships under construction, spanning nearly 128 meters in length, are designed to achieve a top speed of 11.5 knots. Each vessel will be powered by a set of 10 containerized batteries. Upon docking at a port, the vessel is capable of recharging via high-voltage shore power or swapping out its batteries for a quick energy replenishment.

"The lithium batteries we utilize have a total power output of 1,900 kilowatts, which is the largest capacity in China," said Xu Haibo, a technician from the shipbuilder.

The vessel is also equipped with the capability for autonomous navigation in open waters, along with other intelligent features.

The ships are scheduled to be launched in July 2025 and the first of the two is expected to be in service by 2026, according to Xu.

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