MSC Group to Develop First Oceangoing Hydrogen-Powered Cruise Ship

MSC Group, Fincantieri and Snam announced on Monday they had reached an agreement to build the world’s first oceangoing hydrogen-powered cruise ship.

As part of the deal, MSC Group is teaming with one of the world’s largest shipbuilding groups and a top international energy infrastructure operator for the design and construction of the new style of cruise vessel.

The first stage of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) includes conducting a study assessing the feasibility of designing and building the world’s first oceangoing cruise ship powered by hydrogen, which would allow zero-emissions operations in certain areas.

The hydrogen power can be produced without fossil fuels and would be emissions-free on a full lifecycle basis. The energy can be used to generate electrical power through a fuel cell, emitting only water vapor and heat.

“As a company that has long made environmental sustainability its focus, we want to put ourselves at the forefront of the energy revolution for our sector and hydrogen can greatly contribute to this,” MSC Group Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago said.

“With this project, we’re taking the lead to bring this promising technology to our fleet and the industry while sending the strongest possible signal to the market about how seriously we take our environmental commitments,” Vago continued.

The three companies will study key factors related to the development of oceangoing hydrogen-powered cruise vessels over the next 12 months, including “arranging ship spaces to accommodate H2 technologies and fuel cells, technical parameters of onboard systems, calculating the potential greenhouse gas emissions savings and a technical and economic analysis of hydrogen supply and infrastructure.”

The Cruise Division of MSC Group is committed to achieving net carbon neutral operations by 2050.