UK awards grant to mobile LH2 bunkering solution

“We need collaboration across the entire energy industry as there is no one-size-fits-all solution,” said Steven Lua, CEO of Unitrove Innovation. 

”We need to embrace multiple renewable and clean energy solutions to achieve our net-zero ambitions and we need real investment in infrastructure to develop affordable, reliable, sustainable energy in the future.”

Rapid commercialisation

The Leicestershire UK-based clean-tech company unveiled the unit at COP26 in Glasgow last November.

Mr Lua said liquid hydrogen as a commercial fuel has a great potential for many uses, including plugging the gap that electric and compressed hydrogen cannot fill.

“Liquid hydrogen has long been used to safely and successfully send rockets into space. The technology is mature, but the markets for its use are not,” he said.

“We already see very early signs of light-duty vessels being battery-driven or powered by compressed gaseous hydrogen, but liquid hydrogen will allow us to serve the heavier portion of the shipping fleet where we hope to have a much larger impact.”

He pointed out that Unitrove is also exploring options including ammonia, liquid organic hydrogen carriers and solid hydrogen in the form of sodium borohydride. 

“We believe that hydrogen will be recognised as a global commodity that will be traded in the same way that natural gas is today. The bunker fuel market is worth an estimated $120bn, so there is a huge opportunity not only in environmental and social terms, but also financially,” said Mr Lua.

The £30,000 Transport Research and Innovation Grant (TRIG) was awarded to Unitrove by the Department for Transport in partnership with Connected Places Catapult, will be used to help further develop Unitrove’s commercial version of its small-scale portable bunkering facility.