An increasing number of projects are seeking to develop
hydrogen-based power technologies that can be commercially viable for the
shipping industry. Among the projects that are advancing is one in Finland
studying the production of green hydrogen for use in the ferries, while a
public-private partnership was recently formed in Japan to study and develop
hydrogen fuel cells for the commercial shipping industry.
One of the fields of study is green hydrogen. In Europe,
they are looking at coupling with the offshore wind power generation sector to
produce hydrogen from renewable energy. Driven by wind energy, the concept is
that the electrolysis process that splits water into the elements of hydrogen
and oxygen would create renewable energy.
In Finland, the power company Flexens Oy is completing a
feasibility study that focuses on the creation of green hydrogen that would be
used to fuel ferries in the Aland archipelago. Due to the excellent conditions
for wind power production in Åland, Flexens expects that green hydrogen can
achieve production costs competitive with fossil fuels. The feasibility study
looks at combining the production of green hydrogen with fueling the region’s
ferries.
With 90 inhabited islands and a population of 30,000, the
region relies on its ferries. A research study found in 2015 that maritime
transport accounted for about 70 percent of Aland’s emissions. The study
estimated that the emissions amounted to 753 thousand tons of carbon dioxide
equivalents each year.
The feasibility study, which is expected to be completed in
November, provides the first estimate for the technical and economic
feasibility of the concept covering hydrogen production at a wind farm and
using the hydrogen in fuel cells to power ferries in the Åland archipelago. For
the next phase of the project, Flexens working with the Government of Aland has
submitted a grant application to the EU Innovation Fund to advance the project
towards investments. They are currently projecting that the project could be
realized with the first applications of the technologies possible in 2024.
The following year, 2025, a Japanese partnership hopes to
operate its first hydrogen fuel cell vessel. The plan calls for an
approximately 100-foot long ferry able to carry 100 people at speeds of over 12
mph. Kansai Electric Power, Iwatani, Namura Shipbuilding, the Development Bank
of Japan, and the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology are
collaborating on the feasibility study for the vessel powered by hydrogen fuel
cells. The project will also incorporate the development of the fueling to
supply hydrogen to the vessel.