Incat

The company began in 1972 as the Sullivans Cove Ferry Company in suburban Hobart and built four small ferries before International Catamarans was formed in 1977 by a partnership between founder Bob Clifford and marine architect Philip Hercus. This partnership created plans for what was probably the first large wave piercing catamaran in the world. However the partnership was dissolved in 1988 with Clifford remaining in Hobart trading as Incat Tasmania while Hercus returned to Sydney to establish Incat Designs, a design company that became Incat Crowther after a merger in 2005. Incat Crowther has no association with Incat Tasmania and its ships are built by other companies. Incat Tasmania has its own in-house design company, Revolution Design.^[1][2]

In 1989 Incat Tasmania moved to its present location on Prince of Wales Bay, which allowed it to build larger ships, and in 1990 Incat delivered its first 74-metre fast catamaran ferry. At the same time, several other companies also began to build large aluminium vehicle carrying ferries. This new type of ship was revolutionary, and over the next decade fast cats replaced most hydrofoil and hovercraft services as well as many monohull ferries. The success of this new type of ferry led to other shipbuilders around the world using their yards to build large vehicle carrying aluminium catamarans. However many ferry operators preferred traditional monohull designs, and the limited market for 'fast cats' became crowded with manufacturers bidding low to keep their shipyards working.

In August 2024, Incat purchased 12 hectares of land from Norske Skog to build a second shipyard on part of the Boyer Mill site.^[3][4][5]

Large wave piercing passenger and vehicle ferries#edit

In 1990 Incat was one of the pioneers of large, fast catamaran ferries and they have been its core product ever since. The type of ship was different from earlier ferries and its instant success led to Incat becoming a major player in the industry. Marine-grade aluminium alloys such as 5083 are critical in achieving the necessary low weight to reduce drag at higher speeds.^[6] Over the years innovation has led to the ships becoming bigger, faster, more fuel efficient and much more stable on rough seas. Vehicle decks are often movable to make way for high trucks or extra cars.

Ships in this category have been built from 74 to 130 metres long and from 3,000 to 13,000 gross tons. The 99-metre lng-powered HSC Francisco (Hull 069, on Río de la Plata for Buquebus) is the world's fastest ship in commercial service and can achieve speeds up to 58 knots (107 km/h; 67 mph).^[7]

Smaller passenger ferries#edit

Incat began by building small ferries under 37 metres, but from 1990 it concentrated on larger vehicle-carrying catamarans. However, in 2015 the company resumed building smaller ferries and in that year it delivered river ferries for operation in London, Hobart and Sydney. Since then it has designed and built more smaller ferries including two 35-metre, 400 passenger ferries (Hulls 090 and 095) for commuter runs by Port Phillip Ferries from Melbourne Docklands to Portarlington and Geelong.

Military vessels#edit

In the 1990s several catamarans built by Incat entered naval service as fast transports, including HMAS Jervis Bay with the Royal Australian Navy and HSV-X1Joint Venture, Spearhead and HSV-2 Swift, which served with the United States Armed Forces.

Other vessels#edit

K class#edit

In the mid-1990s Incat built three "K class" ferries. They are 70 to 80 metres long, low profile passenger vessels without wave piercing bows or the distinctive centre bow that characterise all other larger Incat ferries. Two were built by Incat in Hobart and a third was built by a Chinese partner. Plans for further Chinese built K class ferries did not eventuate and Hull NF08 remains the only Incat vessel not built in Hobart.

Oil rig tender#edit

Most offshore oil rigs are exposed to rough open seas with crew transfers by helicopter and freight needs served by platform supply vessels. However Azerbaijan's offshore oil rigs are in the calmer waters of the Caspian Sea, the world's largest lake, so crew transfers can be comfortably and more economically undertaken by water. Several fast catamarans have been built to transfer both crews and cargo for this market including Incat Hull 074 Muslim Magomayev delivered in 2015.^[8] The size of catamarans that can be built for this niche market is restricted by the 16.5-metre width of locks on the Volga–Don Canal that connects the Caspian Sea with the Black Sea and the Mediterranean.

Brooke Street Pier#edit

From 1990 Incat had almost exclusively built large catamarans, but this changed in 2014 when the company diversified into something that was not even a ship, although it did float. An earlier Brooke Street Pier ferry terminal on Hobart's waterfront needed replacement and Incat was commissioned to build an 80 x 20-metre floating pontoon. Hull 077 was towed eight kilometres from Incat's shipyard to Sullivans Cove before finishing work was done on site. In addition to ferry berths, the pier hosts a restaurant, a cafe and a number of stalls.

Luxury super yachts#edit

The market for opulent motor yachts has grown rapidly in the 21st century and while the market is mostly for monohull vessels, catamarans are beginning to make inroads. Incat has released several designs ranging from 80 to 112 metres which are shown on their website.^[9]

In its early years Incat built smaller boats and ferries with little to distinguish it from other boat yards except for a willingness to experiment and innovate. But the revolutionary Hull 023 completed in 1990 was quite different and was the first of the type of ferry that Incat is best known for today with its large capacity, high speed, wave piercing hulls and distinctive centre bow. As one of the first large aluminium vehicle carrying catamarans in the world, it contributed to the big changes in the ferry industry that occurred in the 1990s.

In the "Length / class" field of the table WPC means the vessel is a wave piercing catamaran. The three K class vessels were a low profile design without the wave piercing bows and the capacity to carry fewer cars than traditional Incat designs.

In the competitive ferry industry, ships often change operators, especially in Europe. Other ferries have alternated between summer service in the northern and southern hemispheres every six months. Some Incat vessels of the 1990s have been operated by up to six shipping companies with regular name changes.

Gross tonnage is a measure of a ship's enclosed volume rather than its weight or displacement, so similar ships can have differing gross tonnages due to factors such as whether a viewing platform is fully enclosed or open to the weather.

1. ^ Company Profile Incat
2. ^ "Incat speeds up production with SSI expertise and ShipConstructor". SSI. 5 August 2024.
3. ^ Incat to double capacity with new site and shipbuilding capacity Incat 29 August 2024
4. ^ Incat to build new shipyard in Derwent Valley to meet demand for electric vessels Pulse Tasmania 29 August 2024
5. ^ News in Brief Ships Monthly October 2024 page 6
6. ^ Hellard, Paul (19 November 2024). "Capral's Incat journey". AMTIL.
7. ^ "Guinness World Records - Fastest ferry". Retrieved 29 August 2024.
8. ^ Offshore Solutions Incat
9. ^ Concept Vessels Incat
10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Earlier Vessels Incat
11. ^ History Incat
12. ^ "M/S OUR LADY PATRICIA (1986)". Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
13. ^ "M/S OUR LADY PAMELA (1986)". Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
14. ^ "PINAR DEL RIO Declared Total Loss". Ferry Shipping News. 6 September 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
15. ^ T&T Express sinks Trinidad & Tobago Guardian 24 April 2021
16. ^ Díaz Lorenzo, Juan Carlos (2 June 2026). "The catamaran "Volcán de Teno" will leave La Gomera and cover the Algeciras-Ceuta route starting June 17". Puente de Mando. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
17. ^ a b c "Baleària Canarias unveils summer programme with 12-ship fleet to boost inter-island links". Shippax. 2 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
18. ^ Gwenhwyfar (070) Incat
19. ^ Lindoy (072) Incat
20. ^ MR-1 (073) Incat
21. ^ 70 Metre Fast Crew Boat Incat
22. ^ Oil-industry cat a crooner's cruiser as Incat's Muslim Magomayev heads to Azerbaijan's Caspian oilfields The Mercury 14 September 2014
23. ^ a b Incat Builds Arrive in London in Style Sea Breezes 7 December 2015
24. ^ Thames Clippers Hunt Class catamarans Shipping Today & Yesterday 10 October 2017
25. ^ $12 million floating waterfront masterpiece takes shape The Mercury 24 May 2014
26. ^ a b New Manly fast ferries opened to public without Opal card access ABC News 29 December 2015
27. ^ a b 4 Brand New Boats Manly Fast Ferry 18 March 2016
28. ^ Aussie doctor lends her name to newest ferry Transport for NSW 15 November 2016
29. ^ Incat ferries bound for Denmark & Sydney Harbour The Mercury 21 April 2017
30. ^ Victor Chang joins Sydney's ferry fleet Transport for NSW 18 August 2017
31. ^ Pemulwuy arrives in Sydney Transport for NSW 30 August 2017
32. ^ New ferries to cater for population boom along Parramatta River Sydney Morning Herald 2 October 2017
33. ^ Ferry McFerryface wasn't public pick for new ferry name until Andrew Constance's captain's pick Daily Telegraph 30 January 2018
34. ^ "Incat Builds New Ferry for Denmark". Ships Monthly. 29 April 2016.
35. ^ "Virtu's new catamaran will be among the world's largest". Times of Malta. 8 January 2019.
36. ^ Port Phillip Ferries to look at Melbourne to Geelong Service and peak hour trips on the Yarra River Incat 28 November 2017
37. ^ Incat Insider newsletter, issue 049 Incat
38. ^ My Fast Ferry Launched at Incat Incat 10 July 2018
39. ^ "094 - INCAT". Incat. Archived from the original on 1 October 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
40. ^ "095 - INCAT". Incat. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
41. ^ "096 - INCAT". Incat. Archived from the original on 14 August 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
42. ^ "World's largest electric ship measuring 130 metres launched by Tasmanian boatbuilder". The Guardian. 2 May 2025.
43. ^ "Next generation green ferry". Ships Monthly. May 2025. p. 8.
44. ^ Incat Tasmania awarded new 76 metre high speed cataract contract by Seaworld Express Ferry Incat 25 March 2020
45. ^ Incat Tasmania awarded a contract to build 76 metre high speed catamaran for South Korea Incat
46. ^ Ferries in the news Ships Monthly July 2023 page 10
47. ^ a b "Incat's Next-Generation Sustainable Ferry to be Ready for Operation in 2026". Incat. 30 March 2025.
48. ^ "Hull 100". Incat. 10 November 2025.
49. ^ "Incat first for Echandia". www.thedcn.com.au. 24 June 2026.
50. ^ a b "Molslinjen electrifies giant catamarans on the Kattegat". Shippax. 22 July 2025.
51. ^ "Hull 102". Incat. 10 November 2025.
52. ^ "Molslinjen taps Incat for two 129-metre battery-electric ferries | World Ports Organization". 29 August 2025.
53. ^ "Molslinjen taps Incat Tasmania to build third fully electric, high-speed ferry". Riviera. 5 December 2025.
54. ^ "Wärtsilä electric propulsion solution selected for third Molslinjen high-speed ferry". Wartsila.com. 29 January 2026.

Media related to Incat (ship builder) at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website