Hydrogen Week: Can hydrogen help decarbonise maritime?
As part of Hydrogen Week, we’re exploring how hydrogen could help decarbonise some of the UK’s most challenging sectors. Today, we’re looking at maritime, an industry facing growing pressure to cut emissions while maintaining the reliability and scale global shipping depends on.
From ports and ferries to offshore support vessels, maritime transport still relies heavily on fossil fuels. That makes it one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise but also one of the most important and green hydrogen is increasingly being explored as part of the answer.
Produced using renewable electricity, hydrogen has the potential to power vessels directly through fuel cells or indirectly through hydrogen-derived fuels such as ammonia and methanol. Across the UK, projects are now moving beyond theory, testing how these technologies could work safely and commercially in real marine environments.
There is no single solution for maritime decarbonisation. Battery-electric systems may work well for shorter routes, while hydrogen and alternative fuels could prove more practical for longer-distance or high-demand operations. The future is likely to involve a mix of technologies rather than one dominant pathway.
That creates a major opportunity for South West England and South Wales. With established ports, offshore renewable energy resources and growing hydrogen expertise, the region is becoming a centre for clean maritime innovation.
Maritime innovation across the GW-SHIFT network
GW-SHIFT-funded projects are already exploring how hydrogen could support the next generation of maritime transport.
One project led by the University of Exeter and Pure Energy Professionals is investigating how dedicated testing facilities and a proposed Hydrogen Boat Centre could help accelerate the commercialisation of hydrogen-powered vessels. The aim is to create real-world environments where technologies can be tested safely and reliably before wider deployment.
Other projects are exploring hybrid fuel systems that combine electric propulsion, hydrogen and e-methanol. Rather than relying on a single fuel source, researchers are looking at how different technologies can work together depending on vessel type and operational needs.
Beyond vessels themselves, research across the network is also examining the infrastructure needed to support adoption, including refuelling systems, offshore renewable integration and the wider economics of hydrogen and e-fuels.
Together, these projects highlight how maritime hydrogen is beginning to move from concept to practical application.
Industry spotlight: Ecomar Propulsion
Companies across the region are also helping drive innovation forward.
Ecomar Propulsion is developing zero-emission propulsion systems using electric and hydrogen technologies for commercial marine vessels. Its work spans everything from smaller workboats to larger offshore support craft, combining batteries, fuel cells and hydrogen storage systems.
One example is the hydrogen-electric vessel MV Dirac, tested at Exmouth Harbour in partnership with Aluminium Marine Consultants. The project demonstrates how hydrogen-powered vessels could operate in real-world conditions without requiring extensive new port infrastructure from day one.
Alongside propulsion technology, Ecomar is also working on hydrogen storage and fuel integration systems designed to meet maritime safety standards — helping tackle one of the sector’s biggest barriers to adoption.
Regional projects shaping the future
Hydrogen is also becoming part of wider regional plans for ports, industry and coastal economies.
In North Wales, the TransShip II project aims to retrofit the research vessel Prince Madog with hydrogen fuel cell and battery propulsion systems, alongside hydrogen refuelling infrastructure at the Port of Holyhead.
Meanwhile, the Appledore Clean Maritime Innovation Centre in North Devon has secured £15.6m in funding to support the development of low-carbon maritime technologies and supply chains.
In South Wales, projects linked to Milford Haven and the Celtic Freeport are exploring hydrogen production, storage and distribution within one of the UK’s historic energy port regions.
Together, these initiatives show that maritime decarbonisation is about far more than vessels alone. It also depends on ports, infrastructure, skills and regional collaboration.
David Eccles CBE, Director of Hydrogen South West, points to e-methanol as a near-term priority, highlighting a South West project that could put a synthetic-fuel-powered vessel on a dedicated Green Shipping Corridor: “As a bridge to hydrogen as a fuel in its own right, aviation and maritime are going to need green e-fuels in the next few years. In the South West, we're looking to apply to the DfT's Shore 2.0 fund for a Green Shipping Corridor, a vessel powered by a synthetic hydrocarbon, with strong interest from ship owners and Innovate UK. The fuel is likely to be e-methanol, and in the first phase the feedstock may come from waste rather than captured CO₂ and electrolytic hydrogen. We're in talks with major waste operators to produce syngas and, from that, the methanol that maritime vessels will use."
Looking ahead
The maritime sector illustrates both the scale of the Net Zero challenge and the opportunity for innovation.
Hydrogen is unlikely to replace every marine fuel, but momentum is clearly building. Across South West England and South Wales, collaboration between industry, researchers, ports and SMEs is helping turn early-stage ideas into real-world solutions.
With strong maritime heritage, growing renewable energy capacity and an expanding hydrogen ecosystem, the region is well placed to play a leading role in the UK’s clean maritime transition.
Catch up on Hydrogen Week
Across the week, we’ve explored hydrogen’s role in maritime, transport, civic energy systems and industrial decarbonisation, highlighting how hydrogen technologies are already being tested across real-world sectors.
Read the full Hydrogen Week series:https://www.gw-shift.org/news