The hull of the first-ever inland hydrogen vessel arrived in Rotterdam this morning on board the heavy lift vessel ‘Sun Shine’.
The hull arrived from China after a month-long journey and will now undergo finishing touches at Concordia Damen’s Werkendam-based facility. The vessel, named ‘Antonie’, will be 135 metres long, feature a cargo capacity of 3,700 tons and boast a revolutionary fuel cell propulsion.
Antonie is being built by Dutch shipyard Concordia Damen for compatriot inland shipping company Lenten Scheepvaart.
The vessel will be used to transport salt for Nouryon, a global chemical supplier, from its salt factory in Delfzijl in the north of the Netherlands to the Botlek in the Port of Rotterdam.
“Greening the inland shipping sector is something which we feel passionate about and we will continue to work towards this goal,” Concordia Damen CEO Chris Kornet said.
Concordia Damen won the construction contract back in 2021.
Lenten Scheepvaart has received a EUR 4 million subsidy for the construction of the vessel from the Netherlands Governmental department of Infrastructure and Water Management. The subsidy aims to stimulate the development of the use of hydrogen as a fuel on the path toward zero emissions in inland shipping.
Moreover, the inland vessel and its operation will benefit from the subsidised hydrogen bunker station in Delfzijl.