Enova offers support for the study of projects that will produce hydrogen from renewable energy for use in maritime transport. Furthermore, the pre-project support will contribute to establishing hubs for hydrogen production along the coast. "This is a good contribution to the objectives in the government's hydrogen road map. Hydrogen is among the zero-emission solutions that must be used if we are to achieve the ambition of halving emissions from shipping by 2030. This presupposes emission-free production of hydrogen and infrastructure for distribution. I hope the pre-project support will help to develop and mature many good projects that can help accelerate the necessary development," says Minister of Climate and Environment Sveinung Rotevatn (V). Unique opportunity in the maritime sector Hydrogen is an energy carrier that can be important for the decarbonisation of transport and industry in Norway. In order to contribute to technology development and demonstration of technology that uses hydrogen, hydrogen produced without or with very low emissions must be available at a cost that the first users can bear. In the maritime sector in particular, Norway has a unique opportunity to contribute to the restructuring, and Norwegian companies and innovation environments are at the forefront globally in using hydrogen or other hydrogen carriers as fuel on ships. "Maritime transport has a great potential for using hydrogen. We will now facilitate the piloting and demonstration of hydrogen technology at the end-user level by making emission-free hydrogen available as a fuel in this sector. In this way, we will contribute to further technology development as well as reduced costs and barriers for those who want to use hydrogen to reduce their emissions at sea," says Nils Kristian Nakstad, CEO of Enova. The pre-project support will contribute to the maturation of hub projects which, when realized, will provide cost-effective hydrogen production from renewable energy. The hydrogen will primarily be made publicly available for maritime transport purposes in Norway, but it can be adapted for multi-use with other sectors. "This support is primarily aimed at selling hydrogen to the market in the maritime sector, but we are open to the projects also being able to sell hydrogen to users in other sectors, such as land transport or industry. (Here it will therefore be important where you establish the production plant)," says Nakstad. Enova wants better collaboration The support through the pre-project program will contribute to the development of good decision bases for a later investment decision, and to the provision of documentation to be able to apply to Enova for support when needed. Furthermore, the support shall also contribute to better interaction between actors in the value chain "Enova works for the transition to a low-emission society. That journey happens fastest if we collaborate and share the knowledge we gain through various technology projects," says Nakstad. You can apply for up to NOK 1,000,000 in support, and the application deadline is 15 September at 13:00.

In the wake of the pre-project support, an announcement is planned arranged as a competition for investment support to hydrogen hubs for the maritime sector. The competition is scheduled to be launched during the autumn and with an application deadline during the spring of 2022. Here, Enova expects fierce competition for the funds.

Pre-Project Support for Hydrogen in Maritime Transport