Newlight's retrofit transforms existing diesel engines into intelligent hybrid energy systems, combining hydrogen with AI-guided real-time combustion control to enable significantly higher energy efficiency and lower emissions.
The voyage represents a major commercial milestone for Newlight and the maritime industry. It marks Newlight's transition into multi-vessel deployment while demonstrating a new pathway for the future of maritime energy.
Based on the measured performance, the system is projected to save similar vessels $500,000 annually, with a payback period for the technology of under 18 months.
"In a world where energy demand is accelerating, from global trade and shipping to AI and data centers, getting more useful work out of every unit of energy is becoming increasingly important. That is exactly where Newlight fits. We are building a new energy layer for the diesel engines already powering the global economy, making them materially more efficient and cleaner without requiring them to be replaced," said Haran Cohen Hillel, Co-Founder and CEO of Newlight. "The vessel didn't need to change how it operated. We simply gave its existing engine a way to do more, and it did so successfully across thousands of miles at sea."
Commercial Traction
Newlight has signed commercial agreements covering 12 vessels across multiple shipping companies, with broader fleet rollouts planned for next year.
Newlight's partners throughout this journey include lomarlabs, Undeterred Capital, CiRi Ventures, Fusion VC, BIRD Energy, AURELIA, and RINA.
"Our lomarlabs vision is to support novel ways of increasing energy efficiency and reducing shipborne emissions. When we first connected with Newlight we were drawn by the promise that its technology could cut fuel and emissions at cost levels that appeared commercially viable and sustainable," said Stylianos Papageorgiou, Managing Director at lomarlabs. "We then admitted Newlight into our Compass Programme and became an investor to put that promise to the test. This voyage has demonstrated that hydrogen can safely be managed and used onboard, to enhance the combustion of HFO and reduce emissions. It therefore provides a new pathway for sustained compliance within the IMO 2050 framework for existing and aging vessels."
A Retrofit, Not a Replacement
Newlight's retrofit approach – installed in one to two weeks on traditional diesel engine vessels in the water, without needing to drydock – allows operators to start cutting both fuel costs and emissions immediately, without having to wait for delivery of a newbuilding vessel or a global alternative-fuel infrastructure that doesn't exist at scale and likely will not be commercially available for years to come. Vessels can also continue operating during installation so there is no downtime.
Unlike ammonia- or methanol-based alternatives, which require vessels to depend entirely on a new fuel, Newlight's system injects a small proportion of hydrogen into a ship's existing diesel combustion process. A real-time controller anticipates each combustion cycle milliseconds in advance, continuously optimizing hydrogen injection pressure and volume as engine load, speed, and operating conditions change.
The system also allows vessels to run on diesel alone if hydrogen isn't available, removing the infrastructure dependency and risk that has traditionally slowed down adoption of other alternative-fuel systems in shipping. The Newlight system has received regulatory approval from RINA, the globally recognized classification and regulation society, which also named the company the winner of its Hydrogen Innovation Award.
An Industry Under Pressure to Change
Global shipping moves more than 80% of world trade by volume and burns an estimated 250–300 million tons of fuel a year, at a cost of over $150 billion annually – typically comprising about half of all costs and the largest single line item in a vessel's operating budget.
Moreover, EU carbon emissions penalties now add an estimated €1.3 million in annual costs per ship. Global fuel instability and energy dependence – evidenced most recently by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and dramatically reduced traffic through the Suez Canal – further compound the pressures of surging fuel and regulatory costs.
About Newlight
Newlight is a maritime energy company developing hydrogen injection systems for large commercial vessels. Led by co-founders Haran Cohen Hillel and Evyatar Cohen – former senior naval officers with engineering and management experience – Newlight's mission is to accelerate the transition of the maritime industry towards cost-effective sustainable energy. Its hydrogen injection diesel engine retrofit has been proven to reduce fuel consumption and emissions by over 20% on long-range commercial voyages.
About lomarlabs
lomarlabs is a venture catalyst with a proven track record of advancing pioneering technologies across the maritime industry. Drawing on five decades of operational expertise from Lomar, its ship-owning and management parent company, it works alongside start-ups and innovators to develop, test, and scale solutions that support the decarbonisation, automation, and transformation of global shipping.
The lomarlabs Compass Programme provides the route from early validation to onboard deployment, supporting maritime deep-tech start-ups as they move from controlled environments into live commercial operations.
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SOURCE Newlight
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