World's first ever electric cruise ship sets sail on first voyage

ANKARA

The world's largest electric cruise ship, the Chinese-made Yangtze River Three Gorges 1, has set sail for the first time on Tuesday in the country's Hubei province, according to the China Daily newspaper on Wednesday.

The ship, which is 100 meters long and 16.3 meters wide, has a capacity of 1,300 passengers and will be used mostly for Yangtze River sightseeing tours near Yichang.

The ship is entirely powered by electricity, with a battery capacity of 7,500 kilowatt-hours, or the equivalent of more than 100 electric cars. It can go 100 kilometers on a single charge, saving 530 metric tons of gasoline and 1,660 tons of emissions every year.

Powered by clean hydroelectric electricity from the Three Gorges Dam, the ship is a project funded by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Transport in an effort to tap clean energy and green transportation.