Global Energy Ventures Ltd (ASX:GEV) has concluded ship specification engineering for its proposed 430-tonne pilot ship, which is designed to transport green hydrogen to capitalise on opportunities in the Asia Pacific and Europe.
The energy transition company has sent off the ship’s specifications, along with a work package, to the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) for review.
This regulatory body has also been engaged to provide an Approval in Principle for the pilot ship during the September quarter.
Global Energy is working towards making the 430-tonne vessel the first commercial-scale marine transporter for green hydrogen as it prepares a feasibility study for the HyEnergy project in Western Australia’s Gascoyne region.
Approvals program “on time and budget”
Global Energy managing director and CEO Martin Carolan said: “GEV continues to advance the development of our hydrogen shipping program with the pilot 430-tonne ship specification and supporting analysis now complete, allowing ABS to commence their review for Approval in Principle.
“Our team of experts, led by inventor John Fitzpatrick and COO of GEV Canada, David Stenning, continue to deliver the approvals program on time and budget.
“GEV is targeting the pilot 430-tonne compressed hydrogen ship to be the first commercial-scale vessel available for the marine transport of hydrogen and support our commercialisation activity, which now includes the recently announced feasibility study for the HyEnergy Project, located in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia.”
Working towards pilot ship operation
Global Energy’s pilot vessel, able to carry 430 tonnes of compressed hydrogen, will be a scaled version of a planned 2,000-tonne cargo ship, which was approved for development in March this year.
Ultimately, the 430-tonne vessel will enable Global Energy to meet a key target: host an operating fleet of compressed hydrogen carriers by the mid-2020s.
More broadly, a new carrier will position the ASX-lister to facilitate supply and demand for green hydrogen between 2025 and 2030 — making this a world-first for scale hydrogen transportation by sea.
According to Global Energy, up to 85% of the world’s proposed green hydrogen projects are in Europe, with a large pipeline of gigawatt-scale assets all slated to reach operation by 2030.
In order to meet net-zero emissions targets by 2050, the European Union (EU) plans to establish 40 gigawatts of its own green hydrogen production capacity and secure the option to import another 40 gigawatts from outside the EU.
The new ship is forecast to enter construction in 2023 and first operate during the mid-2020s.
Targeting Approval in Principle
The detailed work package GEV has submitted to the ABS includes the ship’s engineering analysis and drawings, stability analysis and tank design calculations.
In tandem, the ABS has been formally engaged to provide an Approval in Principle (AIP), which involves a design assessment that considers international codes and standards to ensure there are no major engineering, regulatory or safety issues.
The ASX-lister is leveraging the 2,000-tonne AIP program to fast-track approval for the pilot ship by end of the current quarter and to ultimately target full class approvals by late 2022.
In addition, C-FER Technologies has recently completed an independent analysis of the pilot ship’s hydrogen permeability, which supported GEV’s design assumptions and the selection of a stainless-steel inner liner.
C-FER is now supporting the selection of carbon steel and welding techniques in preparation for prototype construction and testing in 2022.