An industry partnership comprising Eidesvik Offshore, Wärtsilä Norway and DNV GL announced the closure of the FellowSHIP research project, which has been exploring the use of battery, hybrid and fuel cell technology in the maritime industry for over 15 years.
In 2003, the FellowSHIP project partners began laying the groundwork for marine fuel cell technology, developing a proof of concept and the basic implementation principles, all of which culminated in the installation of a prototype fuel cell on board Eidesvik Offshore’s Viking Lady PSV in 2010.
Over the life of the project, the focus shifted to demonstrating the applicability of hybrid battery power systems, especially lithium ion batteries. Now, as class rules have been established and the technology is fully commercialized, the partners decided to end the project.
FellowSHIP has been an important project for demonstrating, validating and documenting new, efficient and low-emission technologies. The fuel savings and emission reductions achieved during the different phases of the project have been enablers for developing the maritime industry in a more sustainable direction,
…said Ingve Sørfonn, Head of Technology & Development for Wärtsilä Marine Solutions, Power Conversion.
Upgrading four of our ships with battery systems since 2016 would never have happened without the results, experience and knowledge obtained through the FellowSHIP project,
…added Vermund Hjelland, Vice President Technology and Development for Eidesvik Offshore.
Battery and hybrid technology would have made an impact on shipping eventually, but looking back over these 15 years, I think we can safely say that the marine battery revolution started with Viking Lady. This project has benefited a great deal from the funding and support of the Norwegian Research Council and is a perfect illustration of how public–private partnerships can help to bring new technologies to market and spur advances in key national industries,
…concluded Øystein Alnes, Principle Maritime Engineer at DNV GL – Maritime.
