CMAL has been commissioned to carry out a feasibility study for Scottish Enterprise that will evaluate the technical and commercial possibilities of using hydrogen fuel cells to enable the development of zero emission ferries, CMAL press release said.
The feasibility study will be used to apply for European Union funding for the development of a zero emission ferry which is expected in September 2012. The EU project will put Scotland at the forefront of global developments in sustainable ferries and could result in design, development and manufacturing of hybrid engines being located here.
The consortium, CMAL, Logan Energy, St Andrews University and Scottish Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association (SHFCA), will evaluate a number of projects which will focus on cost efficient, innovative and environmentally-friendly vessels and port infrastructure which will benefit Scotland’s rural and island communities.
In recent years, there has been increasing interest in using hydrogen for delivering lower carbon energy systems which can be used in transportation, distributed heat and power generation and energy storage systems.
Up until now hydrogen has usually been manufactured using fossil fuels, through a steam reforming process which generates CO2 emissions. However, hydrogen can also be produced through the electrolysis of water using electricity generated from renewable resources such as wind, hydro, solar, biomass and geothermal. Scottish Enterprise now wish to investigate the technical and commercial feasibility of this proposition.
Guy Platten, CEO, CMAL commented: “We’re delighted to have been commissioned to carry out the feasibility study for Scottish Enterprise who should be applauded for moving in this direction. A successful and robust evaluation could open doors to fantastic funding opportunities in the design, development and manufacturing of zero emission ferries. This would be massive for Scotland’s marine industry and exciting to lead globally.”
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