Examensarbete

Currently, auxiliary engines are used to generate electricity on board the vessels, which are diesel-based engines. Because of this reason, they pollute the air and produce noise and vibrations, affecting the areas nearby the harbours. Fuel cells are considered as a substitute of diesel engines because they do not produce contaminant emissions and involve low level of noise and vibrations. The purpose of the study is to determine if there is a potential market for fuel cells within the marine sector and specify the potential market segment that might be benefited by their use. By doing so, the TEA provides this answer, while the Network approach identifies the relationship between the diverse actors within the industry. In addition, SWOT Analysis is applied for summarizing the results derived from those two models. The results indicate that the potential market segment is the container ships. However, fuel cells have to be improved in terms of safety in order to meet the demands from ship operators. Furthermore, regulations from international organizations and local governments would play an important role, forcing ship operators to acquire a cleaner system. During the development of this technology, other competing options have been already demonstrated in the shipping industry. This implies that fuel cells have to be enhanced faster than the considered time (around 15 years) to overcome this competition.