Louis Dreyfus Armateurs unveils liquid hydrogen SOV concept

France-headquartered Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LDA) has introduced a concept for a service operations vessel (SOV) that utilizes liquid hydrogen as its primary fuel source.

The liquid-hydrogen SOV, currently in the concept design phase, will be able to operate 95% of the time with zero carbon emission, with the vessel only releasing water during standard operations, said the company.

This would have a positive impact on offshore wind farm operations-related emissions by preventing the release of about 4,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, according to LDA.

LDA developed the concept design together with the Norwegian naval architecture company Salt Ship Design and in relation with key stakeholders including main equipment suppliers, class and flag authorities, and fuel providers, with support from the European Commission.

The French firm said the vessel will display a “best-in-class” CSOV operability footprint, with the capacity to have 90 technicians onboard, together with 14 days of endurance at sea without requiring additional offshore facility or heavy port infrastructure.

“We believe that H2 as fuel is one of the key enablers for reducing the impact of shipping industry in the coming years and help reaching the challenging carbon emission targets for the whole industry,” according to LDA.

In terms of other news coming from LDA, in June 2023, the company, together with its joint venture partner Tidal Transit, was selected by Siemens Gamesa to provide a 24-passenger crew transfer vessel (CTV) for operations and maintenance of the 497 MW Fécamp offshore wind farm in France.