Indian shipbuilder Cochin Shipyard (CSL) has received the order from logistics company Samskip Norway for the design and construction of two zero emission feeder container vessels with an option for two more vessels.
The project is believed to be one of the first zero emission feeder container vessels to be powered using hydrogen fuel cells, ultimately using green hydrogen.
This project, under the Norwegian Government green funding programme, is aimed at emission-free transport solutions by adopting sustainable future technologies. These ships can carry around 365 special 45ft high cube containers and are intended to serve the European market where sustainable transportation solutions are in high demand.
Samskip, a group headquartered in Rotterdam, was founded in 1990 with offices in 24 countries across Europe, America, Asia and Australia and Norway to offer transport and related services by land, sea, rail and air, focusing on cost efficient, reliable and environmentally friendly solutions.
In zero emission mode, each vessel is expected to achieve around 25,000t/yr of CO2 reduction. They will achieve zero emission operations in ports by using green shore power at the port of call. The vessel’s deliveries are scheduled from Q3 2025 onwards. The vessels are equipped with hydrogen fuel cells in a hybrid power system with diesel generator back up for longer endurance. There will be an onboard storage facility for hydrogen fuel and propulsion will be by azimuth thrusters offering high manoeuvrability. CSL also recently bagged contracts for construction of two commissioning service operation vessels (CSOV) for the European renewable offshore wind-farm segment. These vessels also employ emission reduction technologies with large capacity Li ion batteries and methanol fuelled generators.
