It is not a barge like the others which has started its rotations between the ports of Bonneuil-sur-Marne (Val-de-Marne) and Gennevilliers (Hauts-de-Seine), upstream and downstream of Paris. This large green barge called “Zulu 06” is in fact a river boat which moves thanks to two fuel cells of 200 kW each, powered by 300 kg of carbon-free hydrogen, which gives it a range of 500 km. Enough to make a few trips back and forth on the Seine, even if he would have to be satisfied with an area 50 km long.
This barge is part of the European Flagships project, a consortium of 11 partners which aims to develop transport using hydrogen.
Baptized as tradition dictates on December 3 (at the port of Javel in the 15th arrondissement) using a bottle propelled by the short-lived Minister of Transport in the Barnier government, and current president of the departmental council of the 'Essonne François Durovray, this ship can transport up to 400 tonnes of goods (the equivalent of 20 heavy goods vehicles or 200 vans). It will allow the delivery of supplies and consumer goods for Parisians, and thus continue to decarbonize last mile delivery in the capital. But according to Sogestran, the French group which is behind its development, Zulu 06 is still only in the “early stages of its commercialization”.
A green fleet for the Olympic Games
This unique barge of its kind in France is part of the European Flagships project, a consortium of 11 partners which aims to develop, commission and operate freight and passenger transport units using hydrogen as a fuel. In addition to Flagships, the development of the barge benefited from financial support from Ademe, the regional and interdepartmental directorate for the environment, planning and transport of Ile-de-France (DRIEAT), Voies navigables from France and European funds.
This is also a legacy of the 2024 Olympic Games, because the interministerial committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games had set in 2021 a target of 40 all-electric or hybrid electric motorized boats, including innovations such as hydrogen, to accelerate the greening of the Parisian river fleet.
-Zulu 06 will join the fleet of barges plying the river. By transporting stones or construction equipment, his predecessors contributed to ensuring that the pharaonic reconstruction of Notre-Dame was completed on time. They were also used to repave the Champs-Élysées, or move equipment for the Olympic Games.
F. H.
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