By Alimat Aliyeva

The world's first commercial passenger ship powered by hydrogen will begin cruising the San Francisco Bay on July 19. Its launch is part of a plan to phase out diesel ships and reduce carbon emissions contributing to global warming, Azernews reports.

The MV Sea Change vessel with a length of 21 meters will be able to carry up to 75 passengers between Pier 41 and the ferry terminal in the center of San Francisco. As part of the pilot program, travel will be free for the first six months. Sea Change is capable of traveling about 300 nautical miles (about 550 km) and operating for 16 hours without refueling. Fuel cells produce electricity by combining oxygen and hydrogen in an electrochemical reaction, the byproduct of which is water. This could help to "green up" the shipping industry, which produces almost 3 percent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, the International Maritime Organization announced plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from commercial shipping by half by the middle of the century.

The authors of the project also hope that hydrogen fuel cells will be able to propel container ships in the future.

Earlier, the US government allocated $ 8 billion for the development of pure hydrogen. However, environmental groups point to the risks of pollution and climate impacts associated with hydrogen. Currently, most hydrogen is produced using natural gas, which does not contribute to reducing carbon dioxide emissions. However, proponents of hydrogen energy believe that in the long term, hydrogen production will become more environmentally friendly through the use of wind and solar energy.