H2SITE Wins €3.4M From Enova to Put a 700 kW Ammonia-to-Power System on Ships
H2SITE has won €3.4 million (NOK 39.1 million) from Enova, Norway’s state climate fund, to build a commercial-scale ammonia-to-power system for ships. The project, called HydraNord Power, will produce a 700 kW net unit that cracks ammonia into hydrogen on board and feeds it to fuel cells.
The system can make up to one tonne of hydrogen a day. It’s aimed at auxiliary and hybrid power on deep-sea vessels and offshore operations: the electricity a ship needs for everything except main propulsion. Development and integration run through 2027, with commissioning planned for early 2028 at Energy House in Stord, Norway, under conditions close to real commercial service.
Why crack ammonia at all
Ammonia is one of shipping’s leading candidates for a zero-carbon fuel. It carries no carbon, it’s easier to store than hydrogen, and there’s already a global trade and handling network for it. Burning it directly in engines has problems, though. It’s hard to ignite, and combustion can release nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas.
Cracking avoids the fire. Heat splits ammonia back into hydrogen and nitrogen, and the hydrogen runs a fuel cell. The hard part is getting hydrogen pure enough for fuel cells out of the cracked gas. H2SITE’s membrane reactor does the cracking and the hydrogen separation in one step, which keeps the unit compact. It’s modular too, so several can run in parallel for bigger loads, on newbuilds or as a retrofit.
CEO Andrés Galnares said 700 kW net meets a real onboard power need, with a standard system that can be copied from vessel to vessel.
The consortium
The partner list is heavy. Equinor is in, along with Höegh Autoliners, the car carrier operator whose newest ships are built to run on ammonia. Breeze Ship Design handles vessel design, and Alltec, Sustainable Energy Catapult Centre and Maritime CleanTech cover fuel cells, integration and testing.
Höegh is the interesting name. An owner that has already built ammonia-ready ships needs ways to use the fuel beyond the main engine. A cracker and fuel cell running the hotel load is one of them.
Small grant, real test
€3.4 million doesn’t buy a fleet. What it buys is a full-size unit tested in near-commercial conditions, which is the step most maritime hydrogen projects never reach. Shipowners won’t commit until they see hours logged on something that fits in an engine room.
Europe is adding pressure. FuelEU Maritime has been tightening the carbon intensity rules for ships calling at EU ports since 2025, and owners are looking for compliance options that don’t depend on scarce biofuels.
If HydraNord works in 2028, ammonia stops being just a main-engine question. It becomes a power supply.