From the left, CEO and owner of Thecla Bodewes Shipyards, Thecla Bodewes and CEO of TECO 2030 ASA, Tore Enge

TECO 2030, an Oslo-based engineering and equipment development company, has signed a Strategic Cooperation Agreement with the Dutch Thecla Bodewes Shipyard to develop expertise and competence for the construction of low and zero emission vessels. This is the platform for potential joint projects to develop efficient and safe hydrogen fuel cell river vessels, including manufacturing, installation, testing and common marketing.

The partners are set to focus on all types of river going vessels, such as push tugs, dredgers, passenger and cargo ships and low-profile coasters.

The Norwegian company believes hydrogen will play a central role in the shipping’s decarbonization mission being an efficient way to store energy as a synthetic fuel and to produce electrical energy. To this end, it has developed a specifically designed modfular fuel cell system. Named, TECO Marine Fuel Cell, the modular hydrogen Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cell system is specifically designed for heavy-duty marine applications offering emission free propulsion by using hydrogen as fuel.

For nearly 200 years, Thecla Bodewes have been tailoring ships to its owner’s needs. The yard now see a strong push for low and zero emission and is committed to delivering this.

“The partnership with Thecla Bodewes enables TECO 2030 to commercialize the TECO 2030 Marine Fuel Cell on newbuilds for inland waterway transport. This is just the beginning of TECO 2030 becoming a major provider of marine fuel cell systems “ says Tore Enger, CEO of TECO 2030 ASA.

“The strategic cooperation with TECO 2030 will enable us to build world-class zero emission vessels, realizing the sustainability goals of our shipyards” says Thecla Bodewes, CEO and owner of Thecla Bodewes Shipyards.