Switch Maritime to build first US liquid hydrogen-fuelled ferry

In collaboration with LH2 Shipping and LMG Marin in Norway, Switch plans to start the US construction of the 80-car, 300-passenger ropax vehicle ferry design that is operating in Norway on liquid hydrogen fuel.

“Switch is proud to be at the forefront of the energy transition in US maritime shipping,” Switch Maritime founder and chief executive Pace Ralli was quoted as saying by Businesswire.com. “With rigorous planning, state-of-the-art engineering and support from leading industry partners and the US Coast Guard, we are ready to pioneer zero-carbon LH2 fuelling for heavier, higher-horsepower workboats.”

The company’s first hydrogen-powered vessel, Sea Change, is a 75-passenger catamaran ferry featuring 600 kW of electric motor propulsion, powered by 360 kW of fuel cells with 246 g of gaseous storage at 250 bar pressure. Sea Change started its public passenger service as part of the San Francisco Bay Ferry system in July 2024.

In addition to Sea Change, Switch is working on a 150-passenger, 25-knot catamaran for the SF Bay Ferry service.

“While the LH2 RoPax ferry design is already DNV classed, there is still some work to do to bring it into US Coast Guard compliance,” said Mr Ralli, quoted by Businesswire.com.

He pointed out LH2 fuelling will follow the same IGF Code that applies to cryogenic LNG fuelling of ships in the US.

According to SWITCH, the larger steel hull of the vehicle ferry offers more flexibility in terms of space and weight compared with aluminium catamaran fast ferry designs, making it an ideal platform for introducing liquid hydrogen fuelling in the US.

The liquid hydrogen from the cryogenic storage tanks is vaporised on board and used in the PEM fuel cells to create electricity for the electric motors.

The ferry will have a service speed of 14 knots, and is expected to require fuelling only once a week, with no need for shoreside electric charging infrastructure. Its Norwegian predecessor Hydra is owned by Norled and performs a triangular six nautical mile round-trip vehicle ferry service, fuelling LH2 only once every 2 weeks.