The vessel powered by the fuel cell will be used to keep the Danish port entrance free of sand.
The companies involved in the project are Hvide Sande Shipyard, Ballard Power Systems and Odense Maritime Technology (OMT), which are now investigating how present experience with hydrogen fuel cells can be applied onboard ships.
In practice, the design of the new vessel will be based on a well-known design for a tug and supply vessel. But with hydrogen on board, it must also be considered how it can be stored and loaded safely as hydrogen is a flammable gas that must be handled safely. Solutions must be found to ensure ventilation, possible fire extinction, monitoring etc. Consequently, the approval process and risk assessment will be quite comprehensible, and the project will – in cooperation with authorities – contribute to determining the requirements for use of hydrogen on board ships. But the parties involved in the project believe that all this can be solved.
During the next two years, the business case will be developed, and the possibilities will be tested in practice.
Source: https://vpoglobal.com