China Launches Largest Hydrogen-Powered Inland Cargo Ship Yun Tao No. 1

China has launched what its developer says is the country’s largest hydrogen-powered vessel, a 2,000-ton inland cargo ship built for service on the Yangtze and Pearl river systems.

The Yun Tao No. 1 vessel was launched on July 16 at a shipyard in Zhaoqing, Guangdong Province; developed by Yuntao Hydrogen Energy Technology in cooperation with China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC).

At around 70 metres in length Yun Tao No. 1 is a modest ship by seagoing standards, but it’s a big step up in scale for inland hydrogen propulsion.

The published figures suggest a range of 760 kilometres on a full hydrogen load. That means it burns about a kilogram of hydrogen for every kilometre it travels. Yuntao Hydrogen Energy said the fuel costs were 25% to 30% lower than an equivalent diesel vessel, but the claim has not been independently verified against operating data.

The developer and CSSC have not disclosed the rated power of the fuel cell system, the vessel’s onboard hydrogen storage capacity or delivery date. What is certain is the operational profile the vessel is designed for.

Yun Tao No. 1 is designed for the crowded, lock-rich, shallow-draught environment of China’s main inland navigation routes, such as the Yangtze and the Zhujiang.

Those waterways account for a large share of Chinese domestic freight, and the barge and small cargo fleets that operate on them are among the tougher sectors to decarbonise. They have slim margins. They stick to a fixed route rarely straying from it and so are well suited to a fuel with limited bunkering infrastructure.

Yun Tao No. 1 is the culmination of a partnership that’s been taking shape for over a year. Yuntao Hydrogen Energy was founded in Guangdong in 2022 and until now has been better known for fuel cell systems for trucks and buses. In mid-2025 it signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the 605th Research Institute of CSSC, the group’s main ship design house in southern China.

Yuntao 1 will undergo fitting out and testing before carrying any cargo.