World’s first fuel cell harbour tug

The project builds on close cooperation between Svitzer and Maersk with the aim to jointly explore the combination of methanol fuel cells, batteries, storage/handling systems, electric drives and propulsion units as a carbon neutral alternative to the conventional fossil fuelled propulsion train.

Ingrid Uppelschoten Snelderwaard, global COO at Svitzer, said: “Fuel cells will be applicable as main propulsion power for tugs earlier than for larger vessels and, further, the time to build a tug is significantly less than for a container vessel. Svitzer will obtain valuable knowledge and operational experience handling fuel cells as an alternative to diesel or pure electric power.”

The 80t bollard pull newbuild tug with escort notation will come with a hybrid electrical propulsion system solution where fuel cells can be dimensioned to deliver a specific amount of sustained bollard pull using fuel cells alone, adding additional power from the batteries during the short but often frequent peaks that characterises towage.

The fuel cells can be used to charge the batteries when the tug is mobilising and when the tug is berthed, minimising the need for expensive shore side charging facilities. The combination of fuels cells and batteries will deliver a self-sustained tug with longer endurance and with less operational constraints than a pure battery-powered vessel.

The fuel cell tug will function as a pilot design for future Svitzer newbuilds and is planned to be put into operation within the Svitzer Europe region by Q1 2024.