FUEL CELL FOCUS
MEPC FUEL CELL GUIDELINES SET STANDARDS FOR INDUSTRY The latest MEPC provisional guidelines for fuel cells has been announced by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The guidelines will have an important part to play as the industry looks to adopt fuel cells for powering vessels in the future, writes Samantha Fisk
8 Kristian Eikeland Holmefjord, EVP & Project Director – Fuel Cells at Corvus (second from left, pictured with fellow members of Corvus’ management team for the marine fuel cell development project)
The IMO comments that the draft interim guidelines will be forwarded to the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) for approval at its 105th session, scheduled to meet in April 2022. “The development of these interim guidelines for safety of ships using fuel cells is part of the important work being carried out by the Sub-Committee in the context of shipping's need for new fuels and propulsion systems to meet decarbonisation ambitions set out in the Initial IMO GHG Strategy,” comments Natasha Brown, Acting Head, Public information Services, IMO. The guidelines look to set the foundation for the implementation of fuel cells onboard vessels which will be an important factor for requirements such as safety. Kristian Eikeland Holmefjord, Executive Vice President & Project Director – Fuel Cells, Corvus explains that: “The guidelines are aiding in the direction of standardisation and scaling up the fuel cell industry to the marine market. The guidelines compiles knowledge of fuel cells across the industry and simplifies the transition to a more sustainable marine industry.” DNV also highlights the latest guidelines also do not cover the use of hydrogen with fuel cells at the moment, which is something that needs to be considered when looking at hybrid powered vessel. Olaf Drews, Head of Machinery and Piping Systems, DNV also comments that at present the International Code of Safety for Ships using Gases or other Low-flashpoint Fuels (IGF) code only covers LNG. However, The Motorship notes that a workplan for the development of guidelines for the safety of ships using hydrogen as a fuel was agreed at the seventh session of the Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC7), and the task had been allocated to an intersessional correspondence group reporting to CC8.
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Drews notes that benefits of having these guidelines will make it “easier for all parties” and will also allow for a “technical status quo” for the industry. Currently, fuels that aren’t covered by the IGF code means that vessels designed to operate with these fuels “have to show to the flag state that it has the equivalent safety levels of a conventional ship, this is demonstrated according to the so-called alternative design approach,” he says. The guidelines will also help with ensuring the safe practices of using fuel cells and will be a “big benefit of having technical guidance of how to bring fuel cells onboard.” In addition, Arild Eiken, Chief Technology and Project Officer, Head of Fuel Cell and Hydrogen, TECO2030 highlights that: “The guidelines will be an indication of how the final regulations will be, which in turn will enable industrial actors to standardise the solutions and carry out projects more quickly and economically.” Developments are already underway in the industry to develop fuel cells with small scale projects under development, mainly in Norway. The developments that are undergoing are starting to show how fuel cells can be utilised for larger applications. “We are seeing the change from small pilot-projects showing fuel cells can function in marine, to large scale industrialisation of fuel cells and it’s required fuel. The guidelines are of great aid to that industrialisation, and a guideline is seldom set in stone, so it doesn’t hinder the development much since when a better and safer solution is developed, the guidelines are adapted to ensure that the best solutions are utilised over time,” comments Holmefjord. DNV also highlights that it is seeing increased
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