Mysterious Project 821 revealed to be hydrogen fuel megayacht

The vessel is a first of its kind in the world and its fuel cell means zero-emission operation

The launch of Project 821 has revealed that the mysterious development was a hydrogen fuel cell powered megayacht that was under construction at the prestigious Feadship shipyard.

Rumors have swirled about who its wealthy owner could be

Early on, many people assumed that it was finally time for the regularly cycling rumor to come back around, guessing that Bill Gates was behind it. There were some online reports that the Microsoft co-founder had indeed purchased it but that the vessel was already being listed for sale.

That said, none of those claims were confirmed, and – as has been the case with every inch of Project 821 – the details of the ownership and sale have been wrapped in mystery. The vessel is currently being sold with a price tag of €600 million (about USD$643.5 million).

The first glimpses of Project 821 have been made at an Amsterdam drydock facility

The megayacht is slated to be powered by a source of green H2. This is part of the shipyard’s design strategy for achieving net zero propulsion by 2030.  While it is officially being labeled as a superyacht by Feadship, many have started calling the shipyard out on the label, as the vessel’s 390 feet in length and 7,000 GT interior volume makes it technically a megayacht.

Project 821 has been designed for luxury, allowing its passengers to travel from one harbor to another as though living in a luxury hotel.  That said, the vessel’s range might be substantial, but not enough that it would be able to make ocean crossings powered by H2. Currently, the vessel does not have adequate hydrogen storage capacity to make that kind of a journey. 

On the other hand, it will be able to cruise emission-free and noise-free at 10 knots (about 11.5 miles per hour).

One of a kind

According to Feadship, the vessel is currently the only one of its kind in the world capable of using hydrogen fuel cells for extended operations.  The vessel required five years to develop and needed adequately scaled equipment to build. Moreover, new regulations and protocols had to be simultaneously developed and implemented as there had yet to be any regulation on any level for a vessel of that nature.