The FLAGSHIPS project raises the readiness of zero-emission waterborne transport to an entirely new level by demonstrating two commercially operated hydrogen fuel cell vessels. The demo vessels include a new build in France (Lyon) and a retrofit in Norway (Stavanger). The Lyon demo is a push-boat operating as a utility vessel on one of the most demanding rivers, the Rhône, while the Stavanger demo is a passenger and car ferry operating as part of the local public transport network. In the project, a total of 1.2 MW of on-board fuel cell power will be installed and both vessels will run on hydrogen produced on-site with electrolyzers powered by renewable electricity. Gaseous (Lyon) and liquid (Stavanger) hydrogen will be used in the vessels' on-board hydrogen storage. Both vessels will be approved for safety. The project will cooperate over a broad base to complete the required safety assessment and approval for the two vessels, by applying and further developing the existing regulations and codes. The ship owners expect to maintain the ships in normal commercial operation after the 18-month demonstration period of the project and to this end, a solid support from local end-users and community has been gathered. The project will reduce the capital cost of marine fuel cell power systems significantly by leveraging knowhow from existing on-shore and marine system integration activities. European supply chains for H2 fuel and FC system technologies are strengthened by networking through the project. The consortium includes ten European partners, with two ship owners Norled (NO) and CFT (FR), and the maritime OEM and design companies ABB (FI), Kongsberg Maritime (NO) and LMG Marine (NO & FR). World-leading fuel cell technology is provided by Ballard Europe (DK) and vessel energy monitoring and management by Pers-EE (FR). Management and dissemination activities are provided by VTT (FI) and NCE Maritime CleanTech (NO), respectively.

The develops and validates approaches to build (3MW) and scale (to 20MW) fuel cell approaches that lower operational cost (capex) and design cost of LH2 PEM operations. We integrate the technical solutions in a larger socio-technical system, in cooperation with linked projects and considerable investments that the project will help generate, with the result of providing what could be the first European maritime supply chain for LH2. This is helped by having the demonstrator as one of two planned sister ships that will connect a new hydrogen production facility with LH2 demand in a series of vessels. Most of these new vessels are in planning stages, and one of them are now built for operation in September 2021 (which then will be the first LH2 ship in operation, with a smaller 400 kW system, by consortia member Norled). HyShip combines the state of the art in ship design (building on the RHODA-method to incorporate logistics and fuel supply in the design process), intelligent energy management systems (lowering capex) and a range of novel conceptual designs of LH2 systems. The project will generate considerable value for Europe, both as its generic approaches will lower cost and time for new vessel projects, but also through its initiative to initiate a scalable distribution system where operators have stable and low-cost access to CertifyHy’ed Green H2. Behind the project is a combination of leading expertise on LH2, energy systems, business models and ship design. Industry partners cover the energy system (Kongsberg Maritime), LH2 systemsThis proposal, HyShip, is a response to topic “FCH-01-6-2020: Demonstration of liquid hydrogen as a fuel for segments of the waterborne sector”, in the “Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking”. We propose development and validation of a 2MW fuel cell liquid hydrogen ship, used in a hydrogen bunkering and supply chain, along with developing business models and the innovation ecosystem for multiple vessels and European regions.