Worldwide first electric boat powered by hydrogen fuel cells

On April 29/30, 2009 the Austrian companies Fronius, Bitter and Frauscher successfully presented the worldwide first electric boat powered by hydrogen fuel cells at Schloss Orth on Lake Traunsee in Austria. TV- and media representatives from 7 countries, numerous politicians and leading business executives attended the event with great interest. The unique concept of self-contained energy supply provided by hydrogen was particularly exciting for all entrepreneurs. Fronius, Bitter and Frauscher truly succeeded to realize an exemplary and forward looking project to advance the topic hydrogen.

The main economic advantage compared with conventional electric boats is the fact that no time has to be spent charging the batteries. For conventional electric boats, 6-8 hours of charging gives just 4-6 hours of use. The hydrogen-powered electric boat requires only the time that it takes to change the cartridge - just five minutes.

With a range of 80 kilometers with a full hydrogen tank, the boat has twice the range of conventional battery-powered boats. The hydrogen is oxidised in the fuel cell and the only emission is clean water. The hydrogen is extracted from water using photovoltaics and electrolysis, in other words stored solar energy, to complete a perfect cycle.

The boat’s fuelling system has been developed by engineers at Bitter. It consists of a cartridge that can be charged with up to 0.7 kg of hydrogen. The entire boat was awarded a safety certificate by the TÜV.

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Source: Fronius International GmbH.