Shell, Sembcorp Marine to Trial Hydrogen Fuel Cells for Ships in Singapore

   By Justina Lee

Global oil major Royal Dutch Shell PLC is partnering with Sembcorp Marine Ltd. in Singapore to study the use of hydrogen fuel cells for ships, the first step in potentially promoting wider use of the clean fuel in the local shipping industry.

Shell said Wednesday that the companies will carry out a feasibility study, with the goal of installing a fuel cell on a ship next year for a 12-month trial. Shell will provide hydrogen fuel for the trial, with a unit of Sembcorp Marine designing a fuel cell and retrofitting the test vessel.

Shell said the test could pave the way for environmentally cleaner shipping. Fuel cells may be the zero-emissions technology with the biggest potential to help the shipping sector achieve net-zero emissions in the coming decades, it said.

"This trial is an important step in demonstrating the applicability of hydrogen and fuel cells on ships," said Nick Potter, general manager of Shell Shipping & Maritime in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. "We see fuel cells and hydrogen as a promising pathway for decarbonizing shipping."

The International Maritime Organization has set a goal of at least halving greenhouse-gas emissions across the shipping industry by 2050. Shell targets cutting its own emissions to net-zero by then.

Write to Justina Lee at justina.lee@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 21, 2021 02:54 ET (06:54 GMT)

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