Sogestran unveils hydrogen-powered inland cargo vessel
French shipping company the Sogestran Group has unveiled what it claims is the first hydrogen fuel cell-powered river vessel to be built in France.
Zulu 06, which will be operated primarily within Paris beginning this month, measures 55 metres long and has a capacity of 400 tonnes of both palletised and containerised cargo. It will be owned and operated by Sogestran subsidiary Compagnie Fluvial de Transport.
The purpose-built vessel is also fitted with a power generation system supplied by ABB Marine and Ports and two 200kW hydrogen fuel cells provided by Ballard. The fuel cells have 300 kg of compressed hydrogen to enable seven days of operational autonomy.
Zulu 06 is being developed through the EU-funded FLAGSHIPS project, which utilises two vessels as hydrogen propulsion and PEM fuel cell technology demonstrators.
The other vessel being developed under FLAGSHIPS is Future Proof Shipping's retrofitted H2 Barge 2, which is operating along the 240-kilometre-long route between Rotterdam and the German city of Duisburg via the Rhine River.
Design work on Zulu 06 was undertaken by Norwegian naval architecture firm LMG Marin.
