b'MEMBER NEWS:First-Ever Hydrogen Fueling of Maritime Vessel in U.S.O n Nov. 18, the successful completion of worlds first hydrogen fueling of acommercialmarinevessel took place at PVA member All American Marine shipyard. The vessel is now beginning its final sea trials before delivery. The event is a monumental step towards decarbonization oftheworldwideshippingindustryand showcasesthecountrysenergytransition away from fossil fuels.The new 75-passenger ferry, called the Sea Change,receivedhydrogenintoits242 kg tanks on the upper deck. It uses that hydrogen in fuel cells producing electricity to power electric motors for distances up to300nauticalmiles,andspeedsupto 20knotssimilarcapabilitiesasdiesel-powered vesselswith the added benefits of zero exhaust smoke or other emissions and very little vibration and noise.The fuel loaded in the vessels tanks includes greenhydrogen,producedinCalifornia by an electrolyzer powered with renewable solar power, which results in zero carbon emissionsintheproductionofthefuel as well.Inthismoment,ournationismore committedthanevertomakingthe transitiontoacarbon-freeeconomy. Hydrogenwillplayamajorroleinthat future, and major players in the maritime industry are ready to decarbonize, says Pace Ralli, CEO of SWITCH Maritime.The fueling follows the regulatory approval inOct.bytheU.S.CoastGuardofthe hydrogenpowertrainandstoragesystemsLaunched in August at All American MarinesystemfromBAESystemswhichincludes onboard the Sea Change, representing theshipyardinBellingham,Wash.,the Sea100kWhoflithium-ionbatterystorage. culmination of years of cooperation with theChangeis a 70-foot catamaran ferry built withTheconstructionmanagementwasledby Coast Guard, focused on safely integratinginvolvement from a number of PVA memberthe Hornblower Group. Having successfully hydrogenpowerandstoragesystemsoncompanies.DesignedbyIncatCrowther,performed the first hydrogen fueling, theSea passenger vessels. The achievement of thisthe vessel is equipped with a hydrogen fuelChangeis now performing final operational milestone unlocks the possibility of manycell system, which includes 360kW of fuelsea trials prior to delivery and is scheduled to futuredeploymentsofsimilarhydrogencells from Cummins and 242kg of hydrogenbegin operations in the California Bay Area power systems on all vessel types. storage,anda600kWelectricpropulsionin Q1 2022.DECEMBER 2021 41 MEMBER NEWS'