AVL Focus - Issue 2023

THE AVL MOBILITY TREND MAGAZINE - No. 1 2023

cover story

focus: What roles can hydrogen and fuel cells play in the marine sector,

and what are the challenges that you see in this respect?

Enger: International shipping is an important enabler of world trade, but

also causes greenhouse gas emissions and pollution. The industry is facing

increasingly stringent environmental restrictions and this regulatory back-

ground is key to TECO 2030’s strategy. The International Maritime Orga-

nization (IMO) aims to reduce carbon intensity in international shipping

by 40 % by 2030, and to cut the total annual greenhouse gas emissions

from the sector by at least 50 % by 2050 compared to 2008.

There are several challenges with creating a bunkering network that will

achieve this, however I am confident that by the time fuel cells are widely

on board commercial vessels there will be hydrogen fueling stations. This

is why large corporations have pledged to become carbon neutral over the

next few decades, and this will only increase.

focus: Please tell us more about the TECO ­Marine Fuel Cell – and how

it can overcome these challenges?

Enger: The first TECO 2030 400 kW fuel cell module will be ready soon

and will go immediately onto the testbed at AVL’s headquarters in Graz.

It will be exciting to see how well it performs in the testing environment.

The purpose-made marine fuel cell has been developed in collaboration

with AVL as a design and simulation partner. Using sophisticated, indus-

try-leading simulation software we simulated real life scenarios to devel-

op a modular and scalable design with 400 kW as the building block. This

makes it the most footprint-efficient fuel cell solution on the market. In a

standard 6 meter ISO container, we can fit 3.2 MW of fuel cells. This is an

attractive solution for shipowners wishing to retrofit zero emission solu-

tions onboard marine vessels, as space is limited on a ship.

We are also aiming to automate the production of the systems with cost-

effective production equipment delivered by thyssenkrupp, to reduce pro-

duction risk. This will allow for steady supply of fuel cells to our ­customers

who want to upgrade full heavy-duty fleets.

focus: Are you based solely in Norway, or do you have a growing foot-

print in hydrogen technology around the world?

Enger: TECO 2030 is headquartered at Lysaker, Norway, with a 15,000

square meter production facility in Narvik, in the north of the country. In

Narvik, we will automate fuel cell production over the coming years and

in 2024, our fuel cell production output will grow to 120 MW, 400 MW in

2025 and 1.6 GW in 2030. Our strategic sales offices are located in Miami,

USA and Singapore and our sales network covers a global footprint to meet

an increasing demand globally. Our production facility in Narvik will pro-

vide the world with leading energy efficient marine and heavy-duty fuel

cells. Our projects involve several segments ranging from trucks to ships,

ferries and construction sites, and is well suited for mining, data centers,

trains, and emergency generators among other applications.

focus: What’s the next big milestone for TECO 2030?

Enger: The next big milestone for TECO 2030 is to see our first FCM400

fuel cell module on the testbed at AVL, and of course seeing the AVL Hy-

Truck commercial hydrogen demonstrator vehicle on the road in Summer

2023. And we are also planning to commission a gigafactory to begin auto-

mated fuel cell production in the first quarter of 2024.

Tore Enger

Group CEO of TECO 2030

Mr. Tore Enger founded TECO

Group in 1994. Tore is a true

entrepreneur and has created

many products and services for

the maritime industry over the

last 28 years. He has an extensive

network in the industry which is

crucial for TECO 2030’s access

to shipowners. Mr. Enger was also

the Chairman and major share-

holder of Scanship Holding ASA

(now Vow ASA), which has been

listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange,

for approximately 10 years

(2008 – 2017).

THE RACE TOWARDS

CARBON-­NEUTRALITY

HAS JUST STARTED…

THE FUTURE IS NOT

FAR AWAY.”