The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways in India decided to develop and build the first indigenous Hydrogen Fuelled Electric Vessels at Cochin Shipyard Limited, kick-starting the efforts of the country towards green shipping.
The GreenShipping In India – 2022 workshop was held in Kochi on April 30rd, 2022. At the Workshop on Green Shipping organised by the Ministry jointly with Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) and The Energy and Resources Institute, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping & Waterways unveiled the Government’s plan for building Hydrogen Fuelled Electric Vessels keeping pace with the Global Maritime Green Transitions.
As informed, the move is part of India’s transformative efforts on the innovative and new technology front on green energy, sustainable cost-effective alternate fuel front. The Minister stated that the project will be carried out by CSL in collaboration with Indian partners. The ground work has already begun wherein CSL has partnered with KPIT Technologies Limited and Indian developers in the areas of Hydrogen Fuel cell, power train and Indian Register of Shipping for developing rules and regulation for such vessels.
The Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vessel based on Low Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Technology (LT-PEM) called Fuel Cell Electric Vessel (FCEV) is expected to cost around Rs. 17.50 crores of which 75% would be funded by the India Government.
The development of Hydrogen Fuelled Electric Vessels is expected to augment the efforts of the nation in achieving the Prime Minister’s ambitious target of becoming carbon neutral by 2070 and also in complying with the standards set by International Maritime Organization (IMO) that envisages a reduction in carbon intensity of international shipping by at least 40% by 2030 and progressively to 70% by 2050.
What is more, in late March, the Shipping Ministry of India announced an initiative concerning a green port project, in order to reduce the CO2 emission of the maritime industry.
