Amid “significant interest in green hydrogen as a maritime fuel”, in the words of Lloyd’s Register CEO Nick Brown, the world’s largest hydrogen-powered ships are set to be built in Norway. Two 117-metre-long vessels will be constructed to transport vehicles along Norway’s 277-kilometre Vestfjordstrekninga ferry route, connecting Bodø and Lofoten, the islands of Røst and Værøy, and Moskenes.
Norwegian shipping firm Torghatten Nord has selected the historic Myklebust Shipyard in Gursken, south of Ålesund, an independent shipbuilder, converter and docking facility founded by a blacksmith in 1915, to construct the mammoth 120-car vessels.
85% green hydrogen
The new ships’ alternative fuel will have biodiesel backup. Their fuel to fuel cells, fed by onboard storage, will be powered 85% of the time by green hydrogen from Bodø firm GreenH, enabling the ferry company to slash CO2 emissions along their Vestfjordstrekninga route by approximately 26,500 tons per year, according to figures from Offshore Energy.
The vessels will be “unmatched by any other ferries in the world today, with the largest hydrogen installations in a ship ever by a substantial margin,” said Gjermund Johannessen, CEO, The Norwegian Ship Design Company. Capable of reaching speeds of up to 17 knots, even in the challenging Arctic Circle conditions, the ships will benefit from “optimal safety”, Johannessen added, through “a unique hydrogen concept using hydrogen’s physical properties.”
The Norwegian government has committed to net-zero targets and in a statement the country’s transport minister, John-Ivar Nygård, focused on the boost to Norway’s industry and the greener transportation the new ships will represent. The deal “shows that Norwegian shipyards are competitive, and it will contribute to building more expertise in zero-emission solutions,” he said.
A brand-new ferry class
Deliverable in 2026, the project is a “significant boost for the Norwegian technology and shipyard environment and we are proud to make it happen”, agreed Marius Hansen, Torghatten Nord’s managing director. The task will require research and development teams, as well as the specification of safety practices and regulations for the brand-new ferry class. Norwegian sub-contractors will supply design, tech components, plant and of course, fuel.
“Together with the maritime cluster in Norway, we will develop new knowledge, secure jobs and be able to take on more apprentices with this assignment. It will be exciting to deliver something that no one has done before us,” Myklebust CEO Leiv Sindre Muren said in a statement.
