Classification society ABS to study nuclear power in shipping

US Department of Energy has granted $800,000 to the shipping classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) to conduct a feasibility study on nuclear power usage in the shipping industry.

PHOTO: Exhaust gases flow from the funnel of a cruise ship. Getty Images

Under the contract, ABS is to develop different models of nuclear reactors for maritime applications and address the challenges of integrating reactor technologies on vessels.

“Modern nuclear technologies are increasingly suggested as a potential solution to shipping’s decarbonization challenge,” ABS Global Engineering and Technology’s senior vice president Patrick Ryan.

ABS is also working with the University of Texas to research molten salt reactors usage in shipping.

Earlier this year, UK-based nuclear power developer Core Power released a report citing plans to use floating offshore platforms powered by nuclear energy to mass-produce ammonia as a marine fuel.

Last November the US Department of Energy awarded a grant of $794,000 to the American Bureau of Shipping to commercialise nuclear technology use in the maritime industry.