DNV Grants Type Approval to Yanmar's 80-320 kW Marine Hydrogen Fuel Cell Series

Classification society DNV awarded type approval to Yanmar Power Solutions Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Yanmar Holdings, for its Maritime Hydrogen Fuel Cell System, the GH-FC series. According to a DNV statement published on 7 September 2026, the award took place at the SMM trade fair in Hamburg in early September.

The certification confirms that the GH-FC series meets DNV’s rules and guidelines for marine applications. DNV says it is intended to give shipbuilders, system integrators and vessel operators greater confidence in adopting the technology and to reduce the certification workload for future projects.

Output Options and Reference Vessels

In its own release dated 4 September 2026, Yanmar describes the GH-FC series as a modular system with output options of 80, 160, 240 and 320 kW. Yanmar says it has developed hydrogen fuel cell technology since 2015 and commercialised its maritime fuel cell systems in 2023. The release lists vessel projects for which the GH-FC series has been “deployed or selected”:

• MOL Techno-Trade’s passenger vessel HANARIA
• the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s hydrogen workboats Tokyo Mirai Maru and Tsukiji ZERO
• NYK Line’s new cruise ship Amane
• an aquaculture workboat operated by Kurose Suisan

The release does not say which of these vessels are already in service, or which output rating each one uses.

What Yanmar and DNV Said

Masaru Hirose, President and Representative Director of Yanmar Power Solutions, called the approval a major milestone in the company’s effort to bring hydrogen-powered solutions to the marine market. Eric Tigelaar of Yanmar Europe said it strengthens the company’s ability to support customers in Europe and beyond, and Olaf Drews of DNV Maritime welcomed the continued cooperation between the two companies.

Type Approval Versus Vessel Approval

Type approval covers the GH-FC system design; it does not itself approve installation on a particular vessel. Each newbuild or retrofit still requires vessel-specific approval for the system’s integration, including arrangements for hydrogen storage and handling on board.

Why It Matters for Operators

Who it concerns: owners, yards and system integrators considering a hydrogen fuel cell installation on a newbuild or retrofit.

Which decision it affects: an approved type gives a project a starting point that DNV has already assessed against its rules, which DNV says should reduce certification work. Approval of the installation on the ship remains a separate step.

What is still missing: neither the DNV statement nor Yanmar’s release describes what vessel-specific approval will require for hydrogen storage and handling, and neither gives price or delivery times. Owners will need those answers from Yanmar and class at project stage, together with a view on hydrogen supply at their ports of call.