Introduction
From Chase Zero to Barcelona.
New Zealand’s hydrogen-powered America’s Cup success.
The America’s Cup has often turned New Zealand sailing ideas into internationally visible technology. In the campaign for the 37th America’s Cup, that influence extended beyond the race yacht.
Emirates Team New Zealand and a group of technology partners developed Chase Zero, a high-speed foiling support boat powered by hydrogen fuel cells. The prototype then became the foundation for a small production fleet used during the 2024 event in Barcelona.
The result was a significant New Zealand engineering demonstration. It proved that a hydrogen-electric system could deliver the speed, range and reliability required of an America’s Cup chase boat, while producing no carbon dioxide at the point of use. It also gave New Zealand companies practical experience that has since been applied to trucks, buses and stationary power.
The story deserves accurate attribution. Christchurch-based GBV Technology (then widely known as Global Bus Ventures) was central to the project, but it did not build every boat or every hull used by every competitor. GBV designed and integrated the hydrogen-electric powertrain. Emirates Team New Zealand created and built the original prototype, and McConaghy Boats produced the later 13-metre hulls. Other America’s Cup teams also developed hydrogen chase boats using different suppliers and designs.
The Challenge Behind Chase Zero
The Challenge Behind Chase Zero
Chase Zero combined fuel cells, batteries and hydrofoils to deliver the speed, range and rapid acceleration required of an America’s Cup support boat.
Chase boats perform demanding work. They must carry people, sails, tools and equipment; follow an AC75 travelling at very high speed; and remain on the water for long training and racing sessions. Conventional chase boats achieve this with large petrol or diesel engines and consequently contribute substantially to a campaign’s fuel use and emissions.
After the 2021 America’s Cup in Auckland, Emirates Team New Zealand set out to demonstrate a cleaner alternative. Initial advice suggested a project of this complexity could take three-and-a-half to four years. The team designed, built and launched the prototype in just over nine months. Emirates Team New Zealand launched Chase Zero in Auckland on 31 March 2022.
The 10-metre catamaran combined two 80kW Toyota fuel cell modules with two 42kWh batteries and two 220kW electric motors. Four pressure vessels carried approximately 32–33kg of hydrogen at 350 bar. The fuel cells supplied most of the energy during normal operation; the batteries buffered rapid power changes and contributed extra power for acceleration and peak speed.
Hydrofoils reduced drag by lifting the hulls above the water. This efficiency was essential: carrying enough stored energy for a fast, long-range battery-only chase boat would have imposed a substantial weight penalty. The prototype was designed to cruise at approximately 30–35 knots, exceed 50 knots at maximum speed and cover roughly 150–180 kilometres in a typical working cycle.
That combination of fuel cells, batteries and foiling was the project’s real innovation. Hydrogen provided endurance, batteries provided fast transient power, and the foils reduced the energy required to maintain speed.
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From One Prototype to a Working Fleet
From One Prototype to a Working Fleet
Chase Zero was not simply displayed and retired. It became an operational support boat and a reference design for the next stage of the programme. Emirates Team New Zealand used its position as Defender to place a hydrogen-powered chase-boat requirement in the protocol for the 37th America’s Cup. This forced the concept beyond one team’s demonstration and stimulated several marine-hydrogen developments.
According to Toyota New Zealand, five 13-metre hydrogen fuel cell boats using Toyota technology and GBV’s New Zealand integration expertise followed the original prototype. Emirates Team New Zealand commissioned a second boat; America’s Cup Event commissioned two, including an open-top version; and INEOS Britannia and Alinghi Red Bull Racing each operated a boat featuring the Toyota–GBV system.
This produced a six-boat family comprising the original Chase Zero and five larger production vessels. All six race teams operated hydrogen-powered chase boats in Barcelona, but some—such as the alternative designs developed for other challengers—used different technology and suppliers.
The production boats were built by McConaghy Boats, with hull construction at its Zhuhai facility in China. Their hydrogen and fuel cell systems were assembled and tested in a full-scale mock-up in Christchurch before delivery. The boats were then subjected to conformity, pressure-system and on-water verification.
The strongest evidence of success is practical rather than theoretical: hydrogen chase boats worked around the Barcelona racecourse supporting teams, officials, guests and event operations. The original technology had moved from a rapid Auckland prototype to repeatable systems installed in larger boats for international service.
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The New Zealand Partners and Their Contributions
The New Zealand Partners and Their Contributions
The programme brought together New Zealand marine design, systems integration, composites, hydrogen supply, certification and investment with specialist international manufacturing.
Emirates Team New Zealand
ETNZ was the initiator and technical driving force. Its designers and engineers were responsible for the prototype, naval architecture, foil design, flight-control software, detailed systems work and integration with the vessel. The team built the first boat at its North Shore facility and fitted it out at its Auckland base.
The foils drew on AC75 knowledge, while ETNZ’s proprietary autopilot controlled ride height. The project allowed the team to transfer high-performance sailing expertise into a motor vessel and test software, mechatronics, composites and electrical systems in a new context.
GBV Technology
GBV supplied the hydrogen powertrain system design and integration. Its engineers brought experience from low-emissions buses and heavy vehicles and worked with ETNZ’s mechatronics team to combine the Toyota fuel cells, batteries, motors, cooling, hydrogen storage, controls and safety systems.
GBV’s role was especially important because a fuel cell module is not a complete propulsion system. It must be integrated with power electronics, storage, controls, thermal management and the duty cycle of the vessel. The subsequent production series demonstrated that GBV’s capability could be repeated beyond the first prototype.
That expertise has not remained confined to boating. GBV has since applied Toyota fuel cell technology to New Zealand heavy-vehicle projects, including a 50-tonne prime mover. The chase boats therefore became a public demonstration of a broader system-integration business.
Toyota New Zealand and Toyota Motor Corporation
Toyota New Zealand helped secure two pre-production 80kW Toyota fuel cell modules for the prototype and supported their wider application. The same core technology was then used in the production boats. Toyota’s contribution linked a global fuel cell manufacturer with New Zealand engineering and a demanding marine test environment.
Toyota New Zealand has treated the project as part of a wider hydrogen strategy encompassing Mirai vehicles, heavy-truck conversions and fuel cell generators. That continuity is important: the economic value of the chase-boat work grows when components, learning and commercial relationships can serve several sectors.
Gurit
Gurit supplied advanced composite materials and structural-engineering support. Hydrogen tanks, fuel cells, batteries and electrical equipment add mass and require large access openings, while a foiling boat must remain exceptionally light and withstand substantial dynamic loads. Gurit’s engineers worked with ETNZ to create a structure that accommodated the new systems without losing the performance required to foil.
The project was selected as a finalist in the 2024 JEC Composites Innovation Awards. JEC’s project description credited ETNZ with the design and systems work, Gurit with the lightweight composite structure, and McConaghy with production engineering and manufacture.
Hiringa Energy
Hiringa supplied renewable hydrogen for the New Zealand prototype programme and assisted with refuelling infrastructure. This addressed a frequently overlooked part of any hydrogen demonstration: the equipment is useful only if fuel of the required quality can be delivered and transferred safely at the right pressure.
Hiringa’s involvement connected the marine project with New Zealand’s developing hydrogen production and distribution sector. It also created experience in a high-flow, time-sensitive application outside conventional road transport.
HPi-CEproof New Zealand
HPi-CEproof New Zealand supported conformity assessment for the production boats, including their pressure equipment, structure, stability and recreational-craft requirements. This work was challenging because hydrofoils were not clearly covered by some existing marine rules. The company prepared technical construction documentation and worked with overseas notified bodies and the Chinese yard.
This regulatory and verification capability is economically valuable. New marine-energy products need evidence that they can meet international safety and market-access requirements, not just proof that a prototype works.
Sir Stephen Tindall and K1W1
Sir Stephen Tindall, then ETNZ’s sustainability ambassador, helped fund and advocate for the prototype. Early, high-risk demonstrations often require investors prepared to support technical learning before a conventional business case has been established. That backing helped the project move at America’s Cup pace.
International Contributors
The programme also relied on important non-New Zealand suppliers. Hexagon Purus supplied high-pressure hydrogen tanks, Mercury components were incorporated into the propulsion arrangement, and McConaghy Boats developed and manufactured the production version. Their participation illustrates the realistic form of New Zealand innovation: locally led systems expertise combined with specialist global technology and manufacturing.
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Why the Programme Counts as a Success
Why the Programme Counts as a Success
The programme met a demanding brief, progressed from prototype to repeat production, operated internationally and transferred knowledge into other markets.
First, it met an unusually difficult performance requirement. The prototype exceeded 50 knots, offered useful chase-boat range and performed real support work. The system had to deliver both endurance and rapid acceleration in a weight-sensitive marine environment.
Second, it progressed from prototype to repeat production. Five larger vessels followed, using the Toyota–GBV powertrain approach. Replication is a stronger test of engineering maturity than one bespoke boat.
Third, it operated on the international stage. The boats supported the 2024 America’s Cup in Barcelona rather than remaining New Zealand-only demonstrators. This exposed the technology and the organisations behind it to global marine, sporting and investment audiences.
Fourth, it created knowledge that transferred to other markets. Fuel cell integration, controls, thermal management, hydrogen storage and safety work can be applied to trucks, buses, generators, ferries and specialist equipment.
Finally, it changed the competition itself. The 37th America’s Cup required hydrogen chase boats. For the 38th Cup in Naples in 2027, the rules allow teams to use either hydrogen or a new battery-electric eChase design. That technology-neutral evolution is evidence of influence: low-emissions chase power has become an ongoing requirement, even though hydrogen is no longer the only permitted solution.
What It Means for New Zealand’s Hydrogen Landscape
What It Means for New Zealand’s Hydrogen Landscape
Its national value lies less in fuel volume than in proving systems-integration capability, building specialist skills and opening marine and land-transport opportunities.
The immediate hydrogen consumed by six chase boats is small. The project’s importance lies in capability and market development rather than national fuel volume.
It Established a Systems-Integration Credential
New Zealand does not manufacture every fuel cell, tank or motor, but it can design complete systems around imported components. GBV’s progression from buses to boats and heavy trucks shows how that capability can become an exportable engineering service and product.
It Linked Marine and Land Transport
Hydrogen industries grow more effectively when production, storage, certification and maintenance serve several customers. Knowledge from a boat can inform a truck or stationary generator, while a shared fuel supply can improve infrastructure utilisation.
It Developed Specialised Skills
The programme required naval architecture, composites, high-voltage systems, control software, thermal management, pressure equipment, hydrogen safety and international certification. These are valuable capabilities for a wider low-emissions economy.
It Gave Hydrogen Visible Proof of Performance
A fast foiling vessel is a compelling demonstration that fuel cells are not confined to laboratory equipment or slow vehicles. That visibility can attract customers, engineers and investment, although publicity must be followed by commercially useful projects.
It Exposed Regulatory Gaps
Verification work identified the difficulty of applying existing rules to a craft combining hydrofoils, batteries and high-pressure hydrogen. Resolving these issues builds institutional knowledge that can shorten future marine projects while maintaining safety.
It Supports a Potential Marine-Technology Niche
New Zealand already has a strong reputation in performance sailing, composite structures and specialist boatbuilding. Adding low-emissions propulsion and intelligent foiling creates a differentiated offering for patrol, pilot, tourism, harbour, support and high-speed transfer vessels.
Economic Opportunity—and Necessary Perspective
Economic Opportunity—and Necessary Perspective
The opportunity is strongest where New Zealand retains high-value engineering, integration, testing and certification, while choosing hydrogen only where operational needs justify it.
The chase-boat programme can contribute to the New Zealand economy through engineering contracts, intellectual property, skilled employment, certification services and international partnerships. It strengthens the credibility of companies bidding for fuel cell trucks, generators and future marine work. It also demonstrates how a high-profile sporting project can act as a demanding test bed for technology with wider commercial uses.
However, it does not by itself prove that hydrogen is the most economic solution for all boats. Green hydrogen remains costly, storage tanks are bulky, and converting renewable electricity into hydrogen and back into electricity is less efficient than charging a battery directly. Short, predictable ferry or harbour routes may be better suited to batteries. Hydrogen is more likely to add value where range, rapid refuelling, high utilisation or vessel weight makes battery-only operation difficult.
The claim of zero emissions also needs qualification. Fuel cells emit water rather than carbon dioxide at the vessel, but total emissions depend on hydrogen production, compression and transport, as well as construction of the boat and its equipment. Renewable hydrogen and efficient foiling make the case stronger; fossil-derived hydrogen would weaken it.
Nor were all economic benefits retained in New Zealand. Production hulls were built overseas and several major components were imported. The domestic opportunity is therefore to deepen the parts of the value chain where New Zealand demonstrated an advantage: design, software, integration, lightweight structures, testing, certification and operation.
A High-Speed Demonstration With Lasting Value
A High-Speed Demonstration with Lasting Value
Chase Zero became a working demonstration whose engineering, production experience and influence extend well beyond one America’s Cup campaign.
Chase Zero succeeded because it was more than a hydrogen publicity exercise. It was a working boat created for one of the most demanding support roles in sport. It combined New Zealand’s foiling and marine-design leadership with GBV’s hydrogen-system integration, Toyota’s fuel cells, Gurit’s composite expertise, Hiringa’s fuel supply and HPi-CEproof’s verification capability.
The original prototype led to five larger Toyota–GBV production boats and helped make low-emissions chase craft a continuing feature of the America’s Cup. It gave New Zealand organisations rare real-world experience at the intersection of hydrogen, batteries, marine engineering and high-performance control.
Its greatest legacy may not be a fleet of hydrogen pleasure boats. It is the proof that New Zealand companies can assemble global components into complex, high-value clean-energy systems, demonstrate them under pressure and carry that knowledge into other sectors. If the country converts that capability into repeatable marine, heavy-transport and stationary-power products, the America’s Cup chase boats will have helped build not only a hydrogen landscape, but a durable low-emissions engineering economy.