Page 18 - NORWAY EXPORTS Maritime 2017-18

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could hydrogen be the

next alternative maritime fuel?

Norway’s maritime industry is stepping up efforts to ﬁ nd ways to use to hydrogen
as an alternative green fuel with a number of exciting new pilot projects.

By Valeria Criscione

Shipowners have long been looking Florø and Maaløy on Norway´s west coast. is to demonstrate that hydrogen is as safe
to alternative fuels, heavy fuel oil and The goal of the pilot project is to have as its conventional alternatives.
marine diesel to limit local pollution and a hydrogen-powered ferry using locally
greenhouse gas emissions, such as sourced hydrogen in operation by 2021. “Cost is a big issue with hydrogen, but
liqueﬁ ed Natural Gas (LNG). The greener hopefully we will get the same effect with
fuel has been used for LNG carriers since There are many advantages to using the automotive industry as we get from
the 1960s, but the ﬁ rst LNG-powered hydrogen and fuel cells to power a ship. The batteries,” says Mjøs. “With large scale
vessel was Norway’s Glutra in 2000. only by-product is pure water, it operates production, we will be able to get the price
silently, and there are zero emissions. If down. In an environmental context, both
Since then, the country has become the produced using renewable energy, such growing surplus of renewable energy and
largest utilizer of LNG as an alternative as wind solar or hydropower, or natural gas planned large scale production from natural
maritime fuel with 70% of the world’s LNG with carbon capture and storage, hydrogen gas with carbon capture and storage are
powered ﬂ eet. The beneﬁ ts are lower SOx, would rank among the most environmentally expected to make hydrogen more popular.”
CO and NOx emissions. But the industry alternative ship fuel, according to the
2
has increasingly cast its net wider into classiﬁ cation company DNV GL. There are currently some class rules for
many types of greener alternatives, such fuel cells, but not for on board storage
as electricity, bio-diesel, methanol, and However, hydrogen is highly combustible of hydrogen and loading procedures.
hydrogen. and its safety related properties are Together with the Norwegian Maritime
different from other fuels. Therefore, Authority (NMA) and other key players,
“For the ﬁ rst time in 100 years we see that extensive safety and qualiﬁ cation analyses DNV GL is working to provide input to
shipowners have to relate to many fuels,” are required before a hydrogen ship can the regulations after testing hypothesis
says Narve Mjøs, DNV GL director for Green be approved according to the regulative for requirements. DNV GL is therefore
Coastal Shipping Programme. “There is no framework set out by the International launching a Maritime Safety Joint
silver bullet that applies to all trades.” Maritime Organisation (IMO). The key issue Development project.

Hydrogen Future
Created in 2015 as public-private initiative,
the Green Coastal Shipping Programme
is now in its second phase of fast tracking
environmentally friendly maritime projects.
For the ﬁ rst time, the programme has
tested hydrogen as a maritime fuel under
the project GKP7H2.

Norwegian shipyards, Brødrene Aa and
Mancraft have together developed a
light weight 30-meter long high speed
passenger ferry concept suitable for
transporting up to 100 commuters
between the local municipality centres

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