Norsepower Oy Ltd. has signed an agreement with Finnish shipping company Viking Line to install its Rotor Sail Solution onboard the M/S Viking Grace, an LNG-fuelled cruise ferry.
The 57,565 GT M/S Viking Grace currently operates in the archipelago between Turku (Finland) and Stockholm (Sweden), and is already one of the most environmentally-friendly cruise ferries in the global maritime industry. With the addition of Norsepower’s technology, the vessel will further reduce its emissions, fuel burn and fuel costs; reducing carbon emissions by circa 900 tonnes annually; equivalent to cutting 300 tonnes of LNG fuel per year.
Preparations for the retrofit are underway, with the installation scheduled to take place during Q2 of 2018. Viking Grace is set to be retrofitted with one medium-sized Norsepower Rotor Sail unit that is 24m in height and 4m in diameter, making it the first-ever global LNG/wind electric propulsion hybrid ship.
The Norsepower Rotor Sail Solution, which can be installed on new vessels or retrofitted on existing ships without off-hire costs, is a modernized version of the Flettner rotor; a spinning cylinder that uses the Magnus effect to harness wind power to propel a ship. The solution is fully automated and senses whenever the wind is strong enough to deliver fuel savings, at which point the rotors start automatically – optimizing crew time and resource.
Commenting on the technology, Ulf Hagström, Senior Vice President, Marine Operations & Newbuildings, Viking Line, said: “As an organization that strives to ensure that our fleet operates in an environmentally friendly and economical way, we are proud to be partnering with Norsepower. Our cruise vessel is the first to use a combination of alternative clean fuels, modern Rotor Sails, electric propulsion, and a hydrodynamically optimised hull. We believe in the Rotor Sail Solution technology’s ability to enhance our ship’s performance by enabling significant reductions in fuel burn and costs, as well as carbon emissions.”
Commenting on the deal, Tuomas Riski, CEO, Norsepower said: “This project marks the first of its kind modern auxiliary wind propulsion technology installation onboard a cruise ferry. As a Finnish based clean technology and engineering company, we are proud to be partnering with yet another prominent shipping company as we work towards a modern era of auxiliary wind propulsion for the global maritime fleet, while supporting shipping’s transition to the low carbon economy.” To date, independent data analysis indicates that up to 20% fuel savings per year can be achieved on routes with favorable wind flows, sufficient sized Rotor Sails, and appropriate service speed.
For more on rotor sail technology, see ECO’s October 2016 feature written by Bill Streever.
