French container line CMA CGM is joining forces with a "floating lab" to move towards the large-scale use of hydrogen as a ship fuel.

The giant shipowner said it would work with Energy Observer, a former racing boat that is touring the world powered by the sustainable energy source.

The two group share a common ambition of zero-emission shipping, they said.

The project combines the innovation of a floating laboratory with the expertise of a world leader in shipping and logistics, they added.

CMA CGM will help Energy Observer test and develop energy solutions based on hydrogen generated by solar, tidal and wind power.

The shipping company called hydrogen a "limitless energy source" that generates up to four times more energy than coal and three times more than diesel.

The hydrogen used by Energy Observer is made from seawater and renewables on board.

Expertise crucial

CMA CGM will contribute its industrial expertise to this floating lab, in order to promote the use of hydrogen as a zero-emission fuel source for the shipping industry in the years to come, it said.

The involvement of the shipowner will make possible the industrialisation of new solutions, it added.

CMA CGM will also contribute its shipping and logistics expertise to Energy Observer.

Tanya Saade Zeenny, executive officer of the CMA CGM Group, said: “Our partnership will mobilise all of CMA CGM’s know-how.

"Our teams of engineers and research and development experts are already working and our network around the world will be strongly mobilised to ensure the logistical support of Energy Observer's worldwide ports of call.”

Victorien Erussard, Energy Observer’s founder and captain, added: “With CMA CGM’s huge experience in the shipping industry, our respective engineers and our technology partners, we have every chance of achieving our goals, which are ambitious but increasingly realistic."

Between 2005 and 2015, the French group reduced its carbon dioxide emissions per container transported by 50%, and it has set itself the target of reducing this by a further 30% between 2015 and 2025.

It has committed to use LNG for its larger ships and has also been testing biofuels.

The 30.5-metre-long Energy Observer, coated with 130 square metres of solar panels, is currently on a six-year world tour.

It was built in 2017 under the leadership of European research institute CEA-Liten.