Development of hydrogen transport ships

Greenstat og Moss Maritime samarbeider for å utvikle et transportfartøy for hydrogeneksport fra Norge til Japan. FoU-støtte er levert av Marintek og Sintef Energi. Greenstat, som samarbeider med NEL, har flere prosjekter i Norge som tar sikte på å produsere hydrogen fra vannkraft. Prosjektene undersøker potensialet for storskala eksport av grønn hydrogen, som kan realisere nullutslippstransport for biler, busser, lastebiler og skip. Moss Maritime er en av verdens ledende skipsdesigner av LNG transportfartøy, som er transport av kald, flytende naturgass, hvor de pionerte LNG-teknologien ved bruk av kuletanker. Deres kunnskap og erfaring med transport av kalde væsker vil bli brukt til å utvikle konsepter for transport av flytende hydrogen over lange avstander. Fartøyet vil bli utviklet basert på en logistikkanalyse av flere havner i Norge og transportveier gjennom arktiske farvann vil bli vurdert. Eksisterende teknologier for hydrogenlagring, overføring og transport vil bli analysert og potensialet for forskning, videreutvikling og forbedringer vil bli gjort gjennom dette forprosjekt før et hovedprosjekt vil bli satt i gang.

Hydrogen will be produced from a) hydropower and b) natural gas including carbon capture storage, which. Both production methods are well known where Greenstat and NEL focus on electrolyses based on renewable energy and Sintef Energy, focuses on reformed natural gas including CCS. Both actors have ongoing R&D in these areas and this will form input to this project. Logistics analysis will be conducted, including voyage in the Arctic, which will form input to the ship design. The hydrogen transport vessel concept will be developed by Moss Maritime based upon a logistics assessment of the hydrogen supply chain, where this work will be developed in close dialogue with Knutsen OAS. Moss Maritime will define the storage tank to be used for the liquefied hydrogen ship transport, and equipment suppliers in the LNG shipping industry will be approached in order to investigate and develop equipment technology for handling of liquefied hydrogen onboard the vessel. Liquifaction technology and hydrogen-capable pipes, tanks, valves, etc. will be targeted as this represents new technology and will be based upon Norwegoian companies cryogenic experience with LNG. Gexcon, a world-leading company on gas explosions and simulations, will conduct risk and safety assessments and work closely with NMD. Gexcon is working with hydrogen safety projects where behaviour of hydrogen, explosion analysis, risk rates, etc. are targeted. The vessel may be fuelled by hydrogen and competence in the use of hydrogen for fuel and fuel cell systems is provided by Norwegian Fuel Cell Systems, a company established by Norwegian Electric Systems and CMR Prototech, . This is however, not the main aim of this project and a state-of-the-art low emission energy system will also be developed as a full hydrogen-driven energy system may have a longer development time than the transport ship itself in terms of regulations, safety assessment and technology qualification.