H2CarbonCat - Nullutslipp karbonfiber katamaran med hydrogendrift

The Pilot-E project "H2CarbonCat (H2CC)" aims to develop and pilot a hydrogen propelled catamaran passenger and car ferry, made of carbon fiber. It is planned to be used on longer ferry routes where battery driven ferries are often not feasible due to their range restrictions. As an example, the ferry connection between Hellesylt and Geiranger takes more than one hour each way and there is currently no electricity charging capacity available in Geiranger. To upgrade the electricity grid is expected to cost between 150 and 300 MNOK. A hydrogen solution is therefore seen as a very practical and sensible solution for this ferry connection. The project offers great value to both society and industry through: A) Being an important step to scale up and verify the hydrogen technology's applicability and suitability for ferries. This will likely also increase the probability for such a technology being used in larger vessels, including cruise vessels. B) Supporting the ongoing Pilot-E project "Hellesylt Hydrogen Hub" in a positive way by securing a complete green hydrogen value chain, including hydrogen production from river induced electricity (through electrolysis) to utilizing this hydrogen as fuel for the ferries. C) Realizing significant reductions in green house gas emissions. Today's ferries operating on the Geiranger fjord are responsible for somewhere between 20 and 30% of the total green house gas emissions on the fjord. Such a reduction amounts to approximately 2500 tons per year. D) Obtaining considerable international attention as the Geiranger fjord is a world heritage site. This should lead to value creation opportunities for all the project partners and the Norwegian hydrogen community in a project that does good for both people and planet.

Den overordnede ideen med H2CarbonCat prosjektet (H2CC) er å utvikle og pilotere en hydrogendrevet katamaranbilferge i karbonfiber som kan benyttes på lengre fergestrekninger der batteri ikke er et reelt alternativ som følge av denne teknologiens begrensninger m.h.t. rekkevidde. Fergesambandet Hellesylt - Geiranger har en overfartstid på mer enn en time hver vei og det finnes ingen lade kapasitet i Geiranger som følge av et svakt utbygd strømnett. En eventuell oppgradering av nettet i Geiranger er estimert til å koste et sted mellom 150 og 300 MNOK. En hydrogenløsning fremstår derfor som meget aktuell for dette sambandet. Hovedarbeidet knyttet til prosjektet vil være todelt: A) Videreutvikling og oppskalering av eksisterende karbonfiber katamaran slik at denne kan transportere både lette og tyngre kjøretøy i tillegg til passasjerer. B) Integrering av hydrogenbaserte brenselcellesystemer i den aktuelle karbonfiber katamaranen inkludert høytrykksystemer for lagring av hydrogen.