Hydrogen ahoy!: Global ship certifier approves Provaris’s H2Neo compressed h2 tanker design

Hydrogen (and hydrogen logistics) focused smallcap Provaris Energy (ASX:PV1) on Monday solicited shareholder interest as the company reveals its receipt of first-stage approvals for its compressed hydrogen tanker design. 

Provaris calls its compressed hydrogen tanker the H2Neo, with 26,000m3 capacity. 

The approvals, three years in the making, come from international shipping certifier American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), regarded as the foremost authority in the industry and with regulations capturing the vast majority of tier-1 jurisdictions. 

Provaris will now approach international maritime industry heavyweight Clarksons to identify which shipyards around the world are capable of building the tanker, with that list to be finalised in early 2023. 

Provaris will then contact shipbuilders picked by Clarksons and acquire in-depth quotes on what the price to build a H2Neo tanker will cost. 

Shares are up 9.8% in mid-afternoon trades. 

TiwiH2 synergy 

The company intends to build a large hydrogen manufacturing project in the Tiwi Islands, which hypothetically (and it’s still early days) would give the company ideal seaborne access to the entire Asia Pacific region. 

Provaris wants to make no less than 50,000 tonnes of green hydrogen a year (more on that below,) with plans to double that in the future. Provaris has an ambitious goal in mind: it is targeting 2026 as the year it first starts shipping hydrogen. 

One of the largest impediments impacting the global hydrogen industry is a lack of seaborne transportation methods; many projects are being established near ports in anticipation of future capability. If large onshore pipeline networks are nearby, even better. 

Existing vessel has ashen reputation 

There is one ship that ships Australian hydrogen by sea: the Susio Frontier, which services a project in LaTrobe valley making hydrogen from brown coal, as opposed to green hydrogen made from renewables, which is the kind of thing Twiggy Forrest is so excited about. 

The Susio Frontier takes hydrogen all the way to a port near Osaka, Japan on its regular voyages; except for when it catches fire. 

Compressed hydrogen the new flavour

“Compressed H2 can deliver a safe and energy-efficient hydrogen shipping solution essential to meet climate targets for 2030 and beyond,” Provaris chief Martin Carolan said. 

“Provaris has set itself ambitious targets for the H2Neo carrier, and I am pleased to say our team has delivered on time … our marketing program over 2022 continues to raise the awareness of compressed hydrogen as a first mover and feasible alternative for regional hydrogen trades.” 

The company previously traded as Global Energy Ventures; it has previously won approvals for its H2Max ship, another vessel of a far larger capacity which the company expects to become a game-changer in the 2030s, once larger hydrogen projects get going. 

In the meantime, we haven’t quite hit the economic sweet spot of producing hydrogen for $2.80/kg. 

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