Under an EU-funded program, the Dutch-flagged MV Frisian Sea, a 6,477dwt general cargo vessel, has made its maiden voyage to Vasteras, Sweden, with two eConowind VentiFoil wind-assisted propulsion units.
This follows a contracts signed some eight months ago between the Dutch owner Boomsma Shipping and eConowind, which worked closely together to manage the installation during a port call in Harlingen.
During the maiden voyage to Vasteras, Sweden, the ship had the VentiFoils in operation, during which eConowind has been conducting the start-up tests. The coming month will be used to optimize the system and operations and train the crew.
We believe it is necessary and very important to meet sustainability challenges to reduce our environmental footprint. Together with the IMO decarbonization goals for 2050 we want to do our part to reduce our fuel consumption and CO2 emissions as soon as possible,
…states Johan Boomsma, co-owner of Boomsma Shipping BV.
Due to the generated thrust by the eConowind unit, the thrust of the propeller can be reduced to maintain the same speed leading to fuel savings and emission reductions, the company explained.
The WASP (Wind Assisted Ship Propulsion) project is funded by the Interreg North Sea Europe program, part of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and brings together universities and wind-assist technology providers with ship owners to research, trial and validate the operational performance of a selection of wind propulsion solutions.
With the help of the Wind Assisted Ship Propulsion (WASP) project, part of the EU Interreg North Sea region program, we will now test the performance during the coming two years. This innovative technology has to work in our daily operations with various wind conditions. We hope to find savings to be in the region of 10%,
…Tessa Remery, project coordinator, adds.
Wind propulsion is seen as an attractive solution for short sea shipping to reduce its footprint, as wind reduces overall demand for alternative, costly, zero-emission fuels.
See also: Paper submitted to IMO stresses key advantages of wind propulsion
