Europe’s largest inland port, Duisburg in Germany, is making a bid to be a decentralized and climate-friendly blueprint for the rest of the shipping industry.

Port bosses have signed a deal with Rolls-Royce Power Systems for a climate-neutral energy supply at a giant container terminal that’s currently being built on what was previously a coal island.

Rolls-Royce is supplying its mtu fuel cell solutions for electrical peak load coverage plus a hydrogen-fuelled CHP plant, with waste heat to be used for process heat or for buildings in and around the port.

Rolls-Royce Power Systems chief executive Andreas Schell said: “Hydrogen technology is no longer a dream of the future – it will prove itself in everyday use in Duisburg.

“The parallel use of fuel cell solutions and hydrogen engines shows that we have taken the right path with our technology-open approach to the development of new solutions for the energy supply of the future.”

There are also plans to integrate photovoltaic systems and battery storage into the local supply network.

The project is being funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy for a period of four years as part of its Hydrogen Technology Offensive.