Page 36: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (May 2021)

GREEN BATTERIES

Zulu Hydrogen powered cargo vessel for River Seine

Photo courtesy Flagships project der 10 minutes. In Denmark, Ellen, 198 pax/31 cars, con- tries (KHI) to build the ship’s propulsion system. In March nects Fynshav and Søby on a 22 mile run in a protected area 2021, Corvus Energy (which also supplied the ESS on Am- in the southern Baltic Sea. Fitted with two motors and a pere) was chosen to provide the ESS for the e5 vessels. Cor- 4.3 MWh battery pack from Leclanché SA, it began service vus, which will integrate its 3,480 kWh Orca ESS into the during the summer of 2019. In Canada, BC Ferries has an tankers; KHI says that battery operations between charges intention for a future conversion of its Island Class hybrids should be six to eight hours. to full electric operation in the future. In Norway, the fully electric 120 TEU container feeder Yara Birkeland (which Looking Ahead: Hydrogen is being readied for autonomous operation) is expected to Forward thinkers are already tackling the infrastructure enter service later this year on the Oslofjord, for fertilizer for distributing hydrogen to the maritime sector. The listed producer Yara Corporation. tanker company Ardmore Shipping (ASC), active in moving

An important demonstration project is a fully battery pow- petroleum products and chemicals (including methanol), an- ered bunker tanker designed by e5 Lab Inc., a consortium of nounced that it was working to team up with Element 1 (E1), seven leading Japanese companies, including Asahi Tanker developers of a technology that enables production of hy-

Co., Ltd. and (with others including Mitsui OSK), which drogen from methanol, on demand at the point of consump- hopes to develop an infrastructure for fully electric vessels. tion. As contemplated under a broad mandate to supply the

The vessels which will service Tokyo Bay, will be built by maritime sector, the E1 system could bring hydrogen to fuel

Koa Sangyou Ltd.(2022 delivery) and Imura Shipyard Co. cells at docks.

Ltd. (2023 delivery). The vessels will be highly maneuver- Corvus Energy is thinking along similar lines, with a late able, with rotating azimuth propellers at the stern (powered 2020 announcement that it was partnering with Toyota, to by an electric motor), and a bow thruster for moving trans- bring its fuel cell technology to the maritime sector, with versely alongside for bunkering operations. plans to develop and produce Proton Exchange Membrane

In late 2020, the consortium chose Kawasaki Heavy Indus- (PEM) fuel cell systems for the global maritime industry. 36 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • May 2021

MR #5 (34-49).indd 36 5/6/2021 4:57:43 PM