Our consortium
Our consortium comprises 15 respected European partners, each dedicated to ushering in a new era of eco-friendly inland waterway transport solutions. At the heart of this visionary collaboration are five shipowners: Future Proof Shipping, Theo Pouw, VT Shipping, DFDS, and Compagnie Fluviale de Transport, along with their respected affiliate, Sogestion.
These pioneering shipowners will find dedicated support and technology from two of the foremost fuel cell manufacturers, Ballard Power Systems Europe, and Nedstack Fuel Cell Technology, who are at the forefront of hydrogen fuel cell propulsion technology. Further strengthening our expertise is the well-known gas company Air Liquide.
To ensure the success of our initiatives, we are privileged to have the highly regarded knowledge institutions: VTT, EICB, and the University of Genova, alongside their affiliate, H2Boat. Together, we forge a path towards successful deployment, widespread dissemination, and the careful replication and exploitation of these groundbreaking demonstrations and technologies.
Together, we will navigate the future with hydrogen power.
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Meet our consortium
A world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, Air Liquide is present in 73 countries with approximately 67,100 employees and serves more than 3.9 million customers and patients. Oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen are essential small molecules for life, matter and energy. They embody Air Liquide’s scientific territory and have been at the core of the company’s activities since its creation in 1902.
Taking action today while preparing the future is at the heart of Air Liquide’s strategy. With ADVANCE, its strategic plan for 2025, Air Liquide is targeting a global performance, combining financial and extra-financial dimensions. Positioned on new markets, the Group benefits from major assets such as its business model combining resilience and strength, its ability to innovate and its technological expertise. The Group develops solutions contributing to climate and the energy transition—particularly with hydrogen—and takes action to progress in areas of healthcare, digital and high technologies.
Ballard Power Systems Europe is an integrated fuel cell manufacturing company. We produce fuel cell stacks, membranes and modules for heavy duty motive and stationary power solutions. Our focus is to provide fuel cell technology development with applications in the truck, bus, marine, rail and stationary power sectors where we work with partners to develop full integrated applications of fuel cell systems. Ballard has over 1000 fuel cell modules operating in heavy duty transport and stationary power applications and has extensive knowledge in the fuel cell technology sector.
Role in the Project: Ballard will work with DFDS with the design, construction and operation of a DFDS container vessel. BPSE will work with DFDS on the hydrogen safety control system in relation to the fuel cell system and the interfaces between systems in coordination with hydrogen storage supplier and the shipyard.
Compagnie Fluviale de Transport is a French inland waterway shipowner, subsidiary of the family-owned company Sogestran group, created in 1948. CFT manages a fleet of more than 110 vessels (barges, pushers and self-propelled barges). The group offers transportation services for every kind of goods. CFT is specialized in dangerous goods (gas, liquid and solid, bulk, or containerised). The highly skilled crews are trained and certified to handle these goods safely. CFT commits to maintain high standards in quality, safety and environmental practices. CFT is certified with ISO 9001 (quality), OHSAS 18001 (safety), 14 001 (environment).
The group has a strong innovation policy with a focus on decarbonization. 15% of sales are reinvested in R&D
Sogestion is the support of the group Sogestran. Its Technical Department supports a fleet up to 150 units of inland and maritime vessels. The Department is capable of CAD, Project management, Finite Element Analysis, Calculation, design of Piping, Hydraulics, Hydrodynamics, Stability, Sea keeping, Power Management and Safety.
DFDS is a transport and logistics company providing the safe and efficient movement of people and goods to more than 10,000 freight customers. DFDS deliver high performance and reliability through ferry and port terminal services and transport and logistics solutions
With more than 11,000 employees, all committed to transforming DFDS business into a greener and more digitised operation. DFDS are proud of the role as part of the critical infrastructure serving customers and communities across Europe and further afield.
Expertise Innovation Centre inland Barging (EICB)
Our team possesses a remarkable combined experience that surpasses the span of a human lifetime, which contributes greatly to our impressive knowledge base. Our knowledge is not solely derived from numbers and facts; it is also informed by real-time feedback from all corners of the industry. Through our expertise, we have successfully completed numerous projects that have made a lasting impact on the future. Noteworthy projects such as SYNERGETICS, PLATINA 3, MAGPIE, NEEDS, Innovation Lab, and others are revolutionizing the industry, making it smarter and more environmentally friendly. Innovation begins with identifying a problem, which then evolves into a question. This question becomes our mission, and our mission drives us to provide the solution.
We are a small yet formidable team when it comes to developing realistic and practical sustainable shipping solutions. We have taken on the challenge to prove that zero-emission shipping is not only possible but it’s achievable at a reasonable cost that is priceless for our planet. Our aim at FPS is to have twenty-five zero-emissions ship projects kickstarted by 2030, and we have successfully retrofitted our first inland container vessel fuelled 100% by green hydrogen, the H2 Barge 1. FPS joined RH2IWER to accelerate the transition to a zero-emissions shipping world. As part of the project, FPS will be retrofitting two more diesel-powered inland container vessels to hydrogen propulsion. After conversion, these vessels will be fuelled 100% by green hydrogen.
The University of Genoa (UNIGE) is an education and research institution, founded in XV Century, in which academics, students and administrative and technical staff participate in the exercise of the respective competences, functions and responsibilities. UNIGE is composed of 22 Departments, 5 Schools, 14 Interuniversity Research and Services Centres, 2 Centres of Excellence. The personnel consist of 1329 academics and 1413 administrative and technical staff, of whom 12 top executive managers. The Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering (DIME) includes the “Thermochemical Power Group” TPG (www.tpg.unige.it ), founded in 1998. Its mission is to carry out theoretical and experimental research in the field of advanced energy systems. Since 2017, DIME hosts the Fincantieri joint laboratory (HI-SEA) for activities related to clean energy storage and propulsion in the marine environment, namely on boats and ships. The main fields of research of TPG include;
Development and testing of advanced technologies for sustainable energy systems with a focus on fuel cell and hydrogen technologies; Dynamic performance modelling of energy systems; Thermoeconomic analysis; Monitoring and diagnostic techniques for energy systems; High temperature fuel cell technology (SOFC); Hydrogen and fuel cell based energy storage and generation (PEM).
H2BOAT is a spin-off of UNIGE focused on FC and H2 technologies promotion in nautical sector).
Contribution to RH2IWER:
- WP7 leader (feasibility studies and replication potential)
- Techno-economic analysis in different EU scenarios
- Feasibility studies for different vessels/scenarios thanks to TPG-UNIGE modelling tools (HELM)
- Participation in dissemination activities and knowledge sharing
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd is one of Europe’s leading research institutions. VTT advances the utilisation and commercialisation of research and technology in commerce and society. Through scientific and technological means, VTT turns large global challenges into sustainable growth for businesses and society. In RH2IWER, main focus of VTT is in the project coordination and also in assisting shipowners in the safety studies of the vessels.