Alternative Fuels
Crown Prince of Norway christens world’s first emission-free container ship “Yara Birkeland”
Ship will transport fertiliser across the fjord from Yara’s Porsgrunn plant to Brevik port and will eliminate carbon emissions of 40,000 diesel truck loads per year.
Norwegian firm Yara International ASA, a producer of nitrogen fertiliser, nitrates, ammonia, urea and other nitrogen-based chemicals, on Friday (29 April) said 500 young local students and the Crown Prince of Norway, Haakon Magnus, celebrated the christening of Yara Birkeland, the world’s first electric, autonomous container vessel.
As a new twist to the maritime tradition, the emission-free ship was christened by not only one, but two godmothers.
To represent the future, young Pernille Gundersrud, 12, and Malene Moen Straume, 12, took on this honourable role. The christening took place close to the Yara Porsgrunn plant.
"Fighting climate change and reducing harmful CO2 emissions is the world community’s most important task. Global warming threatens our future," says Gundersrud.
"We are young. We represent the future, as Yara Birkeland does. We are incredibly proud and thankful to be asked to be godmothers for the world’s first fully electric and autonomous container vessel with zero emissions," says Straume.
The ship will transport fertiliser across the fjord from Yara’s Porsgrunn plant to Brevik port and thereby eliminate the carbon emissions of 40,000 diesel truck loads per year.
A leading nation of green shipping
About 500 Porsgrunn students from fifth to seventh grade joined the Crown Prince in the ceremony.
"We christen you Yara Birkeland. May you be blessed with good fortune on your mission and may you inspire others in the fight for a better climate," the two godmothers said before throwing a specially made champagne bottle of ice against the bow of the ship.
In his speech, His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon Magnus of Norway addressed the young ones, as well as Yara.
"It takes courage to create something new. It requires investment, patience, and an ability to not give up after the first try. Innovation requires trial and error - and trial and error again - until you succeed. Those of you who have worked at Yara for many years have been involved in this several times before throughout the company's history", said His Royal Highness at the ceremony in Porsgrunn.
A brave decision
"This is a milestone for Yara," says Svein Tore Holsether, President and CEO of Yara International.
"Yara took a bold decision in 2017. We wanted to build the world’s first carbon-free container vessel. Today, five years later, we celebrate the outcome of this ambitious decision. Yara Birkeland is a result of ambition, curiosity, and collaboration where innovation, sustainability and technology come together.”
Yara developed the battery-driven ship in collaboration with several Norwegian partners. Kongsberg Maritime has developed and delivered the technology. The ship is built by Vard. Yara Birkeland will be operated by a joint venture undertaken by the Kongsberg Group and Massterly, which is owned by the Wilhelmsen Group. Enova, owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment, has contributed financially (NOK 133.5 million) to the development of Yara Birkeland.
The ship is named after Kristian Birkeland, a leading Norwegian scientist in the early 1900s who is one of the founding fathers of what Yara represents today.
Facts about Yara Birkeland
- Yara Birkeland is the world's first electric and autonomous container ship with zero emissions. The ship will transport fertiliser across the fjord from Yara’s Porsgrunn plant to Brevik port and thereby replace 40,000 diesel truck loads per year and eliminate associated carbon emissions.
- The ship has been developed in collaboration between several Norwegian players. The technology company Kongsberg Maritime is responsible for the development and delivery of the Yara Birkeland technology, including sensors and integration required for remote control and autonomous operations, as well as electric propulsion, battery and control systems.
- The ship was built at Vard’s shipyard in Brattvåg. Massterly, a joint venture undertaken by the Wilhelmsen group and the Kongsberg group, has operational responsibility for Yara Birkeland from its monitoring and operations centre in Horten. State-owned Enova has supported the development of Yara Birkeland with NOK 133.5 million.
- Yara Birkeland will be put into operation in 2022. Initially, it will start a two-year trial period to become autonomous and certified as an autonomous, all-electric container vessel.
Photo credit: Yara International ASA
Published: 4 May, 2022
Biofuel
Hercules Tanker Management vessel “Mount Kibo” takes on B30 bio bunker fuel
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Alternative Fuels
DNV: Seven steps to obtain approval for ammonia- and hydrogen-fuelled ships
DNV summarizes how shipowners can apply a practical, structured approach to gaining approval for ammonia- or hydrogen-fuelled ships as both are gradually emerging as suitable bunker fuels.
Classification society DNV on Monday (28 April) released an article summarizing how shipowners can apply a practical, structured approach to gaining approval for ammonia- or hydrogen-fuelled ships.
From engaging early with flag administrations to addressing design risks, training crews, and managing bunkering safely, DNV described seven essential steps to receive approval:
The paper – Safe introduction of alternative fuels: Focus on ammonia and hydrogen as ship fuels – offers a structured pathway for shipowners to achieve approval through IMO’s alternative design approval (ADA) process.
Seven steps to obtain approval for ammonia- and hydrogen-fuelled ships
“We outline seven steps to assist shipowners and other stakeholders in obtaining approval and safely deploying ammonia- and hydrogen-fuelled ships in today’s immature regulatory environment,” says Linda Hammer, Principal Consultant, Environment Advisory at DNV and lead author of the white paper. “The regulatory path is certainly complex, but the steps and safety measures in the paper add up to a clear, achievable pathway to ship approval and safe operations. It also explains how DNV’s support can significantly ease this process through its tailored rule sets and learnings from pilot projects.”
Understanding ADA phases: From initial design to final approval
IMO’s IGF Code (International Code of Safety for Ship Using Gases or Other Low-flashpoint Fuels) currently covers natural gas but not ammonia or hydrogen. Without detailed regulations, IMO’s risk-based ADA process (MSC.1/Circ.1455) is used. It involves demonstrating that the ship’s safety level is equivalent to that of conventional oil-fuelled vessels.
ADA has two main phases. A preliminary design approval requires a hazard identification (HAZID) study, developing a preliminary risk assessment, and defining preliminary risk-control measures and safety strategies.
Phase two, final design approval, starts with refining the design with detailed technical and safety documentation, then making a final risk assessment, addressing integration and operation-specific concerns. Then come complete system integration testing and submitting findings to the flag administration.
Role of class and flag administrations in approval process
As the IMO regulatory framework progresses towards eventually amending the IGF Code, classification societies like DNV can give shipowners a head start in designing vessels by issuing class certificates and providing prescriptive rule frameworks to support ADA.
Flag administrations enforce statutory regulations and have the final say on approvals. Early and active engagement with the relevant flag administration is therefore the key to clarifying approval expectations and streamlining ADA.
Subject to flag administration acceptance, the DNV rules can be applied as the flag administration’s approval basis or to significantly reduce the complexity of ADA.
Simplifying ship approval: DNV’s rules for ammonia and hydrogen fuels
DNV’s classification rules for ammonia and hydrogen (i.e. the “Gas fuelled ammonia” notation published in 2021 and the 2024 “Gas fuelled hydrogen” notation) provide structured, prescriptive requirements as far as possible to simplify ADA. Applying them helps reduce uncertainty in flag administration approval, streamlines design focus by aligning with expected risk assessments, and provides predictability to shipowners, ship designers and shipyards.
The paper describes step-by-step actions for obtaining approval. First, engage DNV and the flag administration early to clarify the approval basis. “DNV can help owners and yards in the initial contact with the flag administration to obtain necessary clarification regarding the approval scope and process,” says Hammer.
Second, align the design with DNV rules to ensure it provides a strong technical basis for risk evaluation. Third, tap into DNV’s extensive and growing experience from prior projects to anticipate what risk studies and documentation may be needed.
The paper also discusses measures to manage the new technical, human and organizational risks that both fuels bring compared to conventional fuels. DNV’s dedicated ship rules for each fuel type outline technical requirements and mitigation systems to integrate during design and operation.
Note: DNV’s full article on ‘Practical guide for approval of ammonia- or hydrogen-fuelled ships’ can be read here.
Related: DNV releases white paper on safe and scalable adoption of ammonia, hydrogen bunker fuels
Photo credit: DNV
Published: 30 April, 2025
Methanol
Ofiniti to roll out e-BDNs for Golden Island methanol bunkering operations in Singapore
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