World's first hydrogen-powered ferry goes into operation

A new type of ferry using liquid hydrogen fuel has been put into operation under the Norwegian ship operator Norled, opening up a new way for the operation of clean ships.

The ferry MF Hydra, which has been undergoing tests and sea trials in recent weeks, was officially put into operation on March 31 with the approval of the Norwegian Maritime Administration. The ship provides services on the Norwegian Hjelmeland, Skipavik and Nesvik triangle routes, can carry 80 vehicles, is equipped with 4 tons of liquid hydrogen, two 200-kilowatt fuel cells, a 1.36-1.5 MWh battery and two 440-kilowatt Diesel generators. There are 80 cubic meters of hydrogen tanks and fuel cells on top of the ferry, and the hydrogen is transported by truck from Leipzig, Germany.

The hydrogen system of the "MF Hydra" was provided by Linde Engineering of Germany, and the fuel cell using hydrogen to generate electricity was developed by Ballard of Denmark. The equipment and construction of the ship were jointly undertaken by Norway's Westcon Shipyard and the system integrator SEAM. Seam also provided automation services for the hydrogen system and Corvus Energy provided batteries for the ship, which is currently approved by the classification society.

"Today will be a historic day, both for Norled and for Norway, a leading shipping country. Today, we will witness the world's first ship sailing with liquid hydrogen," said Heidi Wolden, CEO of Norled .

Erlend Hovland, chief technology officer at Norled, said: "There are only two parties in the world that use liquid hydrogen as fuel. Norled's 'MF Hydra' is one of the parties, and the other party is the aerospace industry that uses liquid hydrogen as a launch fuel. The extent to which the maritime industry has now taken a huge technological leap forward. After extensive development and testing, we are now looking forward to welcoming passengers on a zero-emission journey between Hjelmeland and Nesvik."

Norled is no stranger to innovation, having spearheaded an electric ferry revolution in Norway in 2015 with the launch of the world's first battery-powered ferry, the MF Ampere. Today, there are about 70 electric ferries operating in the country.

"It is important for us to be at the forefront of technological development. Investing in innovation, sustainable development and collaborating on new solutions is our way of being socially responsible," said Heidi Wolden.

The development of the "MF Hydra" ferry has led to technological progress and has prompted classification societies and the Norwegian Maritime Administration to develop appropriate rules and regulations to enable the use of hydrogen on Norwegian passenger ships.

Knut Arild Hareide, Director of Shipping and Navigation at the Norwegian Maritime Authority, said it was important for the maritime nation of Norway to have companies investing in new green technologies, as Norled has done with this hydrogen project. "We know there can be some challenges when new technology is put into service, and it's good that the Norwegian Maritime Authority has been closely involved with the project from an early stage, as we were when the first battery-powered car ferry was about to enter service. Same. This is of course a very important project for Norled, but also for Norway as a country. Businesses and authorities work together to promote the development of new technologies, from which Norway will also gain a competitive advantage and possibly provide the basis for new jobs , while also making working in the maritime industry even more exciting.”