Global consortium

Corvus is spearheading a collaboration with Norwegian partners Equinor, shipowners Norled and Wilhelmsen, ship design company LMG Marin, the NCE Maritime CleanTech cluster and R&D institution the University of South-Eastern Norway (USN) to develop and produce modularised and cost-effective PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) fuel cell systems for the international marine market. The project has received EUR 5.9m in funding from state agency Innovation Norway and The Research Council of Norway bolstering Corvus’ front-runner position in clean technology for maritime and other sectors. The development is scheduled to showcase its first marine fuel cell system onboard a vessel in 2023 and the product will be marine certified and available for commercial delivery from 2024.

Important step towards decarbonizing shipping

The initiative combines Norwegian maritime expertise together with fuel cell modules supplied by one of the world’s largest fuel cell producers Toyota, who has 30 years’ experience in the development and production of fuel cells for the car market and other land-based applications. Corvus and Toyota signed a partnership on 18 December 2020. The agreement secures Corvus access to proven fuel cell technology while enabling large-scale production and competitive pricing. The production will be Norway’s first of its kind, strengthening the country’s pole position in the global efforts towards decarbonizing shipping.

Interest in hydrogen for maritime applications has been increasing rapidly, with hydrogen power seen as an important step to reach shipping’s ambitious goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2050. Reducing the cost of fuel cells and increasing access to the technology is crucial to accelerate the transition. The initiative represents an important step towards achieving both goals by producing modularised systems not available on a large scale today. The Corvus-Toyota partnership will become a strong player enabling a significant increase in capacity of marine fuel cells to the market.