Bramble Energy has received just under £1 million in government funding from BEIS (Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy) to further develop their hydrogen fuel cell technology, which could save 50,000 tonnes of CO2 per year by replacing diesel engines in boats.
The one-of-a-kind fuel cell will serve as the foundation for a fully compliant demonstrator vessel, which is critical for rapid hydrogen adoption on inland waterways.
Bramble Energy and its partners will use the funds to form a strong, UK-based commercial consortium to develop a cost-effective fuel cell system for mass maritime decarbonization. Bramble Energy will lead the consortium, which has partnered with Barrus, one of the UK’s leading marine engine suppliers, on the ‘BRAMBUS’ feasibility project. Barrus will meet the marine market’s critical technical, commercial, and legislative needs, as well as provide a direct path to market exploitation.
The “BRAMBUS” project will be a first in the marine industry, and it will support Bramble Energy’s larger goal of developing Printed Circuit Board Fuel Cell (PCBFC) systems for other maritime applications.
The United Kingdom is known around the world as a maritime nation, with a global shipbuilding industry. The maritime sector emits 940 million tonnes of CO2 per year, or about 2.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). New vessels must be zero-emission capable by 2025, according to the Clean Maritime Plan.
