Korean shipbuilding companies, HMM and Wooyang Shipping, have recently signed long-term charter contracts with Brazilian mining company Vale and ordered the construction of eight and four 210,000-ton cargo ships, respectively. These ships will be equipped with wind-powered propulsion systems (Rotor Sails) that can reduce primary fuel consumption.
Reducing Fuel Consumption and Carbon Emissions
Vale has announced that these ships are capable of reducing fuel consumption by up to 10% per ship using wind energy. Vale plans to increase the number of ships equipped with wind-powered propulsion systems to 20 by 2030.
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Advancements in Shipbuilding Industry
Cargo ships, due to their large deck space, are suitable for the installation of sails. However, there have recently been more instances of installing wind-powered propulsion systems on types of ships where installation was previously difficult. For example, Maersk, along with Anemoi Marine Technologies, installed 35-meter sails on an 8,700 TEU container ship earlier last month. This is the first time sails have been installed on a container ship.
Container ships pose challenges for the installation of wind-powered propulsion systems due to the need to carry containers on deck. According to the International Windship Association (IWSA), container ships face slow adoption of this technology due to limited deck space and difficulties in retrofitting existing ships with wind-powered propulsion systems.
Advancements in LNG Sector
In the liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier sector, a ship equipped with a wind-powered propulsion system has recently commenced commercial operations. Hanwha Ocean delivered an LNG ship equipped with two Wind Challenger systems to Chevron in the United States at the end of last month.
Additionally, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is accelerating the development of an LNG ship with a wind-powered propulsion system. Last month, the company launched a project in collaboration with Korean Register and BAR Technologies from the UK to develop an LNG ship with a capacity of 174,000 cubic meters.
Wind-powered propulsion systems can be added to existing ships without changes to the engine or fuel system. According to IWSA, as of June this year, 107 large commercial ships have installed wind-powered propulsion systems, of which 46 are in the design phase for new ships and 61 have been retrofitted on existing ships.
Ryu Min-chul, a professor at Korea Maritime and Ocean University, noted that research and development in wind-powered propulsion systems in Korea has only begun in the last two to three years and is less experienced compared to Europe. He added that with the increase in numbers and use cases, not only shipbuilders but also equipment suppliers will be able to produce this technology at lower costs.
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