More than 350 people gathered in Oslo to get the latest updates on maritime hydrogen. Maritime CleanTech had the honor of hosting the 2nd Nor-Shipping Hydrogen Conference, and our partners made sure to give the audience the insights they came for.
Amidst the buzz of the industry’s most anticipated event, this year’s Hydrogen Conference was the place to be for all hydrogen enthusiasts. The ball was kicked off by one of the largest car companies in the world, as Toyota Motor Europe shared its take on a viable hydrogen ecosystem. Toyotas’ commitment to carbon neutrality reaches beyond road transport and highlights marine and ports as a core of the ecosystem development:
“Toyota is committed to a multi-tech strategy towards carbon neutrality in road transport, but also in marine. Success depends on a holistic approach, bringing hydrogen supply and demand together in business viable ecosystems, with secured hydrogen uptake. Marine and ports will be at the core of ecosystem development.” Says Thiebault Paquet, Head of Fuel Cell Business TME, who met the maritime industry in Oslo.
A global perspective on “sticks vs. carrots”
To set the current scene of rules and regulations, Toyota was followed by Sveinung Oftedal from the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment. He explained how different parts of the world use rules and regulations as “sticks and carrots” to phase out fossil fuels. Even though his speech was titled “The race to Zero Emission,” his conclusion was clear: the race is not yet on. With this as a backdrop, we invited up Yara, Equinor, Norwegian Hydrogen, ABS, and the Norwegian Shipowners Association for a heated panel debate.
Led by moderator Tine Louise Trøen from Greensight, the panel discussed subsidies and policies required to get maritime hydrogen production out of the starting blocks. IRA, ETS, and contracts of difference were among the means in question, and the panelists elaborated on how they see the market emerging in different scenarios.
Scaling up the maritime market
Worlds firsts, pilots, and pioneers. Part two of the program hosted presentations and discussions from some of the most forward-leaning companies in the industry. Norled, Amogy, Amon Maritime, Wilhelmsen New Energy, and the Flagships Project updated the audience on their groundbreaking ventures. As the first steps towards hydrogen-powered vessels are taken, the remaining question of how to go from pilots to commercial success was on the agenda. In a discussion moderated by the Executive Director from Riviera Maritime Media, Edwin Lampert, the speakers got into detail on the technical improvements, regulatory landscape, and environmental aspects of making their solutions scalable. Here the audience was invited to pitch in, and by using their phones, viewers got to ask their questions to those on stage.
For those unable to attend, don’t worry – you can now catch up on the insights and discussions from the conference, as the recording is available online.
Thank you to our partners who joined us on stage, our co-host Ocean HyWay Cluster, and the Nor-Shipping team, for making the event a success.