Fuel cell supplier selected for Norwegian ferry project

The company announced that it has signed a letter of intent to negotiate final terms concerning the contract. The final contract is expected to be signed by 3 March 2023. The project is being led by Norwegian electrical integrator SEAM. PowerCell will deliver its PowerCellution Marine System 200 which will enable each ferry to produce up to 6 MW of power. The solution has a flexible product design with high power to weight ratio, safe operation and can easily be customized to the energy needs of different projects.

PowerCell Sweden AB notes that the Marine System 200 is also very durable and well adopted to the challenging marine environment and service life of marine vessel. 

The Motorship covered PowerCell Sweden AB’s PEM fuel cell based technology in an article in 2020. The company notes that its latest PowerCellution Marine System 200 system has a specific fuel consumption of up to 67g/kWh of hydrogen at “reference conditions”, and has a fuel efficiency of 54%. 

The ferries are being built on the account of Norwegian ship owner Torghatten Nord, and are expected to operate on Norway’s longest ferry route, Vestfjordstrekninga, connecting Bodø, Røst, Værøy and Moskenes, when they enter service. The two vessels will use a minimum of 85% green hydrogen as fuel. The Motorship understands that the vessel will use a liquefied hydrogen containment system.