Offshore staff
ORKNEY, Scotland – A new project supported by Innovate UK is aiming to retrofit a crew transfer vessel (CTV) with hydrogen fuel cells in order to cut CO2 and NOx emissions while servicing offshore wind farms.
Phase 1 of Project Verdant is now underway involving a preliminary design and feasibility study. If the concept is deemed viable subsequent project phases will seek to execute the concept design and test it in the field.
The project consortium is led by Orkney-based Green Marine, which supports the offshore renewable energy sector across Europe with marine engineering services, with project partners Waves Group and EMEC (European Marine Energy Centre).
Green Marine’s Managing Director Jason Schofield said the ultimate objective is to capture sufficient learning from the operation of a retro-fitted vessel to enable Green Marine to expand its fleet with new-build ZE CTVs (Zero Emissions Crew Transfer Vessels) and ultimately SOVs (Service Operation Vessels), to support installation and maintenance activities in offshore wind farms in the UK and further afield.
Project Verdant’s conceptual design incorporates hydrogen fuel cells that are connected to electric motors, which can work in conjunction with the existing diesel-fueled engines, which can be shut down to enable zero emission operation at slow speed while working within offshore wind farms. This hybrid system could reduce the vessel’s CO2 emissions by up to 30% and NOx emissions by up to 40%.
Marine consultancy Waves Group have partnered with Green Marine and EMEC to help solve the technical and regulatory challenges associated with this innovative project. Project Verdant will further benefit from economic modelling and advice on refueling, logistics and safety from EMEC.
11.16.2023
