Hydrogen as a propulsion system for inland vessels. To boost this development, Minister Van Nieuwenhuizen (Infrastructure and Water Management) is allocating 4 million euros for the construction, development and commissioning of the first inland cargo vessel in the Netherlands that is powered by hydrogen. Hydrogen is an important sustainable alternative for inland vessels that run on fossil diesel. By supporting the construction of the hydrogen vessel, Van Nieuwenhuizen gives a further boost to the sustainability of inland shipping. In 2050, Dutch inland shipping must be zero-emission. The new inland vessel is expected to come into service in 2023.

Minister Van Nieuwenhuizen: “Sailing on hydrogen is no longer an idea on the drawing board. By building this ship and soon using it, we learn in practice what it takes to use hydrogen safely and on a larger scale in our inland shipping. This is a great step forward on the way to zero-emission inland shipping ”.

The use of hydrogen in inland shipping is still in its infancy. By developing a new ship now that runs on green hydrogen, it will soon be possible to experiment further in practice with the production, storage and transport of hydrogen applications. In this way, hydrogen can develop as an important sustainable propulsion system for inland vessels in addition to, for example, battery-electrically powered ships.  

Partnerships

The ship will be called Antonie, will be 135 meters long, 3700 tons and will be built by Lenten Scheepvaart BV. The construction does not stand alone, but is part of the WEVA project. This is the abbreviation for 'Hydrogen Electric Cargo Ship Antonie'. The Antonie will transport salt from the Nouryon factory in Delfzijl to the Botlek in Rotterdam. The project, in which the engine supplier and fuel cell producer are involved in addition to the shipowner and transporter, is supervised by inland shipping cooperative NPRC.

NPRC CEO Femke Brenninkmeijer: “The unique thing about this project is the collaboration between shipper, inland shipping entrepreneur, NPRC cooperative and the government. Only with the support of all stakeholders is it possible to go from dreams to reality, from words to deeds, with zero-emission transport ”. 

Green Deal

Inland navigation makes an important contribution to the shifting of freight transport from road to water and the reduction of emissions. The national government, provinces, ports, maritime sector organizations, shippers, carriers, banks and knowledge institutions have joined forces in 2019 with the Green Deal for Sea Shipping, Inland Shipping and Ports to make shipping more sustainable.

This Green Deal resulted in earlier impulses for cleaner inland vessels, such as the establishment of Zero Emission Services (ZES). At the beginning of this year, Minister Van Nieuwenhuizen made 11,7 million euros available to support inland skippers and shipowners in the purchase and installation of newer and cleaner ship engines. There was also subsidy for manufacturers for the development and production of cleaner ship engines. Over the next five years, the cabinet will make 65 million euros available to equip inland vessels with SCR catalytic converters. This contribution is part of the measures that are being taken to reduce nitrogen emissions. The national government reports this on them website.

Also read: 11,7 million euros for making inland shipping more sustainable