NatPower H, part of the NatPower Group, the world's leading developer of green hydrogen production, storage and distribution, and Bluegame, a member of the Sanlorenzo Group, an Italian shipbuilding company excellence, have announced the completion of Italy's first marine hydrogen bunkering, marking not only the world's first hydrofoil hydrogen-powered pursuit yacht refueling operation, but also heralding a new future for the energy transition in the yachting industry.
The bunkering operation is on the BGH, a zero-emission chase boat that will sail with the two main teams at a speed of 50 knots during the 37th America's Cup.
With this refueling action, Bluegame and NatPower H have announced a partnership in which the two highly innovative companies will join forces to develop a long-term strategy to support the energy transition in the yachting industry. Their goal is to promote the use of hydrogen in recreational yachting and revolutionize an industry committed to environmental sustainability and technological advancement. The combination of these skills will pave the way for a fully zero-emission boat of the future.
At the Sanlorenzo shipyard in La Spezia, the BGH comes to life at a pressure of around 180 bar with the gentle injection of green hydrogen. This achievement would not have been possible without the strong support of the Authority of the Port System of the Sea of East Liguria. The operation, carried out by NatPower H, took 30 minutes to officially begin the testing phase of the two chase boats, with the final refuelling expected at 350 bar in July.
Bluegame's story is a story of courage. Carla Demaria, CEO of Bluegame, commented: "The courage to keep challenging – as Gabriele d'Annunzio says, always remember to take on a challenge. "From the birth of the first non-traditional BG yacht, which broke the yacht classification and created its own segment in the field, to the recent technical challenge of designing and building to comply with the very demanding America's Cup agreement – the BGH, a hydrogen-powered chase vessel that will fly at 50 knots on a hydrofoil, with zero emissions (except for a few drops of water), to compete in the 37th America's Cup with the American Magic Team and the French Orient Express team.
BGH represents the pinnacle of sustainability today, and the project is part of the global sustainability strategy "Road to 2030" of the Sanlorenzo Group, a pioneer in achieving carbon neutrality. The use of hydrogen as a propulsion system is a completely new concept not only for Bluegame and the Sanlorenzo Group, but also for the entire leisure yachting industry: so it is not the end, but the beginning.
Andrea Minerdo, CEO of NatPower H, said: "The completion of hydrogen bunkering for the chase yacht is a historic breakthrough for the Italian and international yachting market. We pave the way for a new generation of zero-CO2 boats and ignite a spark of hope for the green transformation of the yachting industry. NatPower H has embarked on this new route by creating the world's first comprehensive hydrogen bunkering infrastructure for recreational yachts. "This project also marks a new direction in the way we sail. By using hydrogen as a green fuel, we can reinvent the yachting industry, paying more attention to the beauty of the environment and taking responsibility for the fragility of our marine ecosystems. The commitment and partnership between NatPower H and Bluegame represents an important first step towards a green transition for the yachting and superyacht industry.
NatPower H is a leading global developer of innovative infrastructure for the production, storage and distribution of green hydrogen. NatPower H is part of the NatPower Group, an independent developer of clean energy power generation infrastructure projects that support businesses, utilities and investors worldwide. The company has one of the world's largest pipelines of renewable energy projects with a total capacity of more than 30 GW, driving the energy transition process across all major technologies, including solar, wind, energy storage, and hydrogen. In just a few years, NatPower has established itself as one of the preeminent independent developers, with operations in seven different countries: Italy, the United Kingdom, Kazakhstan, the United States, Canada, Tunisia and Chile. With three offices in Milan, London and Washington, D.C., the company employs more than 70 people on three continents.
Bluegame was founded in 2004 by Luca Santella with the goal of creating practical and efficient boats that are unique, unconventional and unrestricted in the market. This vision translates into the historic BG Collection, a perfect blend of sophisticated design and an uncompromising experience at sea. In 2018, joining the Sanlorenzo Group changed Bluegame's business model and opened up incredible growth opportunities.
Under the leadership of CEO Carla Demaria and Head of Product Strategy Luca Santella, the company has experienced extraordinary growth, with revenue doubling 16x in five years. The new collection gradually joins the historic BG series while maintaining its traditions: the BGX series, in which the "X" is reminiscent of the crossover spirit on the SX yachts of Sanlorenzo, the first luxury multihull yacht in the history of Sanlorenzo. However, sustainability has always been a key focus in Bluegame's design, and the BGH is a microcosm of this, a hydrofoil-powered pursuit boat that will fly alongside the American Magic and the Orient Express during the 37th America's Cup. For shipbuilders, this is not the end, but the beginning, and the new BGF hydrofoil multihull series, which the shipyard will launch in 2025, will take advantage of this experience.