Swedish hydrogen-electric technology supplier PowerCell Group has secured a follow-up order to provide fuel cell systems for two additional bulk carriers being developed by GMI Group AS. Ship & Bunker reported that the SEK 27 million contract extends a project that now comprises four hydrogen-electric ships, following an earlier agreement covering the first pair.
The latest package includes 10 Marine System 225 fuel cell units alongside engineering services, according to a company update emailed on Monday and cited by Ship & Bunker. It follows the initial deal signed in September 2025 for two vessels. Across the four-ship project, PowerCell is to supply 24 fuel cell units, providing a combined installed capacity of 5.4 MW.
India-based Chowgule Shipyard will build the two newly ordered bulkers, each with a deadweight capacity of 3,000 tonnes. They will be smaller in deadweight terms than the first two vessels in the programme, which are each specified at 4,000 tonnes. The additional order therefore extends the fuel cell supply arrangement to another pair of ships with a different cargo-carrying capacity.
The vessels will generate electricity on board using fuel cells supplied with compressed renewable hydrogen. That arrangement places hydrogen at the centre of the ships' onboard electricity production. The reported contract covers both the fuel cell equipment and engineering support, rather than equipment supply alone, for the two additional vessels in GMI's project.
The original pair are each 85 metres long and are scheduled for launch in 2027, Ship & Bunker reported. Those first two ships are expected to become the world's first hydrogen-electric bulk carriers. The launch schedule cited in the report applies to that initial pair; no launch date was given for the two additional 3,000-tonne vessels covered by the follow-up order.