Will future ships use clean green Hydrogen as their power source? Maritime Research and Innovation UK (MarRIUK) has proposed a major modal transport shift as part of the UK Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review. The vision is to have within 10 years a fleet of UK built coastal zero carbon ships transporting goods and cargoes around the UK’s large network of ports. Shifting transport from already congested road and rail onto water which is already the lowest energy method of goods transport.

The proposal was developed by a core team of MarRIUK working group members from BMT, Shell Shipping and ourselves at the University of Southampton. It looks to transform how the UK makes the most of its coastal highways. Examining the transport logistics system as whole will allow many of our smaller ports to be transformed, sustaining their localities, will reduce the growing pressures on our road and rail bottlenecks, will revolutionise the approach to vessel traffic management and greatly ease the development of maritime autonomous systems development. However, front and centre is the need to decarbonise shipping. The development of a flagship fleet of zero carbon ships will allow us to take the bold step needed to replace fossil fuels with an energy source that has pollutant free emissions will blaze a trail to the industry woldwide showing how it can be done.

Research and Innovation will be at the heart of the work bringing together the maritime and other sectors to develop a cost effective transport system. MarRIUk is part of Maritime UK which next week (12th-18th Oct 2020) has a series of events as part of Maritime Week 2020. An opportunity to showcase the many aspects of the maritime sector in the UK which is such a strong part of our economy.