The world's first electric and self-propelled container ship – Yara Birkeland – has departed for its maiden voyage in the Oslo fjord, according to the company's release.
“We are proud to be able to showcase the world's first fully electric and self-propelled container ship. It will cut 1,000 tonnes of CO2 and replace 40,000 trips by diesel-powered trucks a year, says Svein Tore Holsether, CEO of Yara.
Yara Birkeland, which has already received wide coverage in Norwegian and international media, has been developed in collaboration with the Kongsberg Group (KONGSBERG). The ship was built by VARD with financial support from Enova, and will be in commercial operation from 2022.
Now begins a two-year testing period of the technology that will make the ship self-propelled, and finally certified as an autonomous, all-electric container ship.
Yara Birkeland is a collaborative project between several actors, where KONGSBERG is responsible for the development and delivery of all newly developed technology on the ship. The ship will be operated from Massterlys’ monitoring and operations center in Horten.
Massterly is a joint venture between KONGSBERG and Wilhelmsen.
Enova, a government enterprise responsible for promotion of renewable energy, has allocated up to NOK 133.5 million to build the world's first electric and autonomous container ship.
In parallel with the construction of Yara Birkeland, Yara has initiated the development of green ammonia as an emission-free fuel for shipping, through the newly started Yara Clean Ammonia.
As the world's largest producer of fertilizers, Yara relies on ammonia to make fertilizer, and to help feed an ever-growing population.
At the same time, current ammonia production represents 2 per cent of the world's fossil energy consumption. This corresponds to about 1.2 percent of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions.
About Yara
Founded in 1905 to solve the emerging famine in Europe, Yara has established a unique position as the industry’s only global crop nutrition company. The company operates an integrated business model with around 17,000 employees and operations in over 60 countries, with a proven track record of strong returns. In 2020, Yara reported revenues of USD 11.6 billion.