Freeport East has announced that the Hydrogen Zero Emission Maritime (HyZEM) project, which focuses on developing low-carbon green hydrogen technology for high-powered workboats, will receive £1.44 million from Innovate UK and ‘a similar sum’ from Australia’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.
Businesses from the UK and Australia specialising in green hydrogen storage and propulsion technologies are involved in the project, which was facilitated by Freeport East, a global freeport in the East of England. The freeport offers ‘a targeted set of significant tax reliefs’ at Felixstowe, Harwich and Gateway 14 near Stowmarket.
The goal of Freeport East is to ‘attract inward international investment and drive domestic growth, propelling the country’s economy forward’.
Steve Beel, CEO of Freeport East, said: “This news highlights the rapid innovation-driven growth occurring within the freeport and marks the third consortium funding success Freeport East has achieved in the past year.
“Freeport East is demonstrating how we can be an enabler of green technology solutions and support UK businesses to succeed overseas. These innovations will also support our broader efforts to drive transport decarbonisation at both the local and international scale.”
The HyZEM project aims to ‘demonstrate practical applications for green hydrogen storage and propulsion on vessels, including bunkering technology, port storage, refuelling infrastructure and how it will support local supply chains’.
It is led by Steamology, a provider of zero-emission power solutions. Matt Candy, CEO of Steamology, provided insight into the company’s work and emphasised his enthusiasm for the firm’s involvement in the project, saying: “We are pleased to be working with such talented partners across the hydrogen and marine supply chain and thank InnovateUK for grant funding the opportunity.
“Steamology delivers scalable and modular solutions for industrial steam heat and power, embracing the hydrogen and circular economies, eliminating emissions, replacing fossil fuels and fossil fuel engines. Steamology is delivering the world’s first zero-emission hydrogen steam turbine marine propulsion, 130 years after ‘Turbinia’, the world’s first steam turbine steam ship.”
Also involved in the project are the National Composites Centre (NCC), Duodrive, Chartwell Marine and the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult. Joseph Hewitt, project engineer for development and operations at the ORE Catapult said: “We are delighted to partner with Steamology and the extended HyZEM consortium team, contributing our independent expertise in offshore renewable energy and clean maritime technology to this important feasibility study.
“Demonstrating the potential of innovative technologies such as hydrogen-storage and hydrogen-fuelled turbines to decarbonise the world’s marine fleet could pave the way for future cost savings and risk reduction benefits for the entire industry, minimising environmental impact and moving us closer to achieving our net zero ambitions.”
To find out how you can make your supply chain more sustainable and what benefits this can bring, register now for Logistics Manager’s Sustainable Supply Chain Conference.
This one-day face-to-face event will allow delegates to hear directly from industry-leading speakers how business sustainability can influence their bottom line.
