Waterborne transport: does hydrogen have prospects for shipping?
RF Government and Sistema PJSFC have recently signed an agreement of intent to develop hydrogen energetics. Designing of hydrogen-power ships is already underway in Russia but their commercial prospects are still vague.
| In brief Hydrogen is among alternative fuels for vessels with electric propulsion. A number of Russian companies and scientific organizations are engaged in the development of the required technologies. Ships running on hydrogen can be first of all used in the segment of passenger transportation. However, a special infrastructure is needed for their mass use. |
According to the Government’s statement, the implementation of the activities foreseen by the roadmap will let create technologies and equipment for production, storage, transportation and application of hydrogen based on Russian developments.
“As of today, hydrogen is one of the most promising energy resources in the world, and Russia has a high potential in this market. We are interested in attracting large industrial partners from the private sector to expand the use of hydrogen as an environmentally friendly fuel, achieve carbon neutrality and technological leadership of our country,” said Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak.
Among the projects of Sistema Hydrogen Technologies Center is the creation of an electrochemical generator for one of the first hydrogen-fueled ships in Russia, which will let increase the cruising range of electric ships.
IAA PortNews asked Sitronics Electro, a company involved in the project on creation of a ship running on hydrogen for a comment. Andrey Gurlenov, General Director of Sitronics Electro, said a pilot run of a hydrogen-fueled passenger ship was planned for September 2023. It is to be held in the water area of the shipyard in the Leningrad Region.
“The power plant for the ship was assembled by the Hydrogen Technologies Center. For on water testing it will be installed on electric catamaran Ecovolt intended for leisure voyages. It is too early to talk about mass production of such vessels. A special infrastructure is required for them – a developed network of hydrogen stations. On the other hand, this is an undoubtedly promising type of water transport, not only environmentally friendly, but also economically beneficial for ship owners. Now we see a general increase in demand for electric ships, so we expect that ships with increased autonomy due to hydrogen fuel may also be in demand,” Andrey Gurlenov commented.
| Among the Russian scientific organizations working on the technologies for hydrogen application on water transport is Siberian State University of Water Transport (SSUWT). Under the state order, it has recently embarked on R&D “Hydrogen energy for water transport, development of storage systems and application of new clean fuels”. Saint-Petersburg based Krylov State Research Center is also working on designing of a hydrogen-powered vessel. Besides, Krylov State Research Center is working on extraction of super-clean hydrogen from hydrocarbon fuel. A prototype plant has been developed. Hydrogen transportation is in the focus of KSRC as well. The Center is looking for technological and industrial partners. |
In his interview with Russia 24 news channel, Aleksey Rakhmanov, General Director of United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) said that electric propulsion is the future of the shipping. According to him, the epoch of electric propulsion will begin on the horizon of 10-20 years. However, the issue is what types of batteries are to be used.
As for the worldwide experience, hydrogen is being considered as a promising fuel for shipping.
In June 2023, DNV signed a classification contract for four state-of-the-art Commissioning Service Operation Vessels (CSOVs), ordered by Norwegian offshore wind operator Edda Wind. The vessels will be prepared for zero-emission operations based on a Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier (LOHC) concept in addition to being methanol ready. The ships are to be delivered in 2025-26.
Also in June, RINA and Eni signed an agreement to jointly develop initiatives that can contribute to the energy transition and decarbonisation of their respective operations and particularly maritime transport. Specifically, the agreement focuses on the use of HVO (Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil) biofuel produced by Eni in its Venice and Gela bio-refineries, as well as of other energy carriers such as “blue” or “green” hydrogen and ammonia from biogenic, renewable or waste raw materials.
In our opinion, mass commercial use of hydrogen-powered ships is still a far prospect. In Russia, the development of such ships is hindered by the need to ensure substitution of import components. At the current stage, ships running on hydrogen can be first of all used in the segment of passenger transportation, primarily for leisure voyages. However, a special infrastructure should be developed for that purpose.
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