The Linde Group, based in Munich, Germany is opening up the world’ first hydrogen fueling station for fuel cell ships in Hamburg’s City Park. In January 2008, I had talked about how Zemships (zero emission ships) would be cruising around the Hamburg harbor starting this summer.
The first 100-passenger Zemship will carry passengers around both the Alster River as well as the Elbe River. The 100-passenger Zemship is a hybrid-electric vessel using both hydrogen fuel cell, developed by Proton Motor, and battery pack to propel the water vehicle.
With zero emissions ships on the rivers there will be fewer gasoline slicks floating on the water and fewer puffs of black smoke from diesel engines to be seen as well. The Linde station will dispense liquid hydrogen for the ships at minus 253 C, which will then be compressed and burned in the fuel cell.
Right now Linde holds claims to being the world’s largest manufacturer of hydrogen systems with over 120,000 hydrogen fuel-ups so far in 15 different countries. Linde also has over 50,000 employees worldwide in 100 different counties.
As I explained a couple of weeks back, Big Oil is not the biggest player in the hydrogen fuel station and infrastructure market. Large specialty gas companies such as Linde claim this position. And, now with Linde claiming another first, they are pulling away even farther in the marketplace.
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