Cargill and BAR Technologies’ innovation, BAR Tech WindWings by Yara Marine, has set sail on open waters, testing new technology that is believed to bring cutting-edge wind propulsion to commercial shipping for the first time.
Mitsubishi Corporation’s Pyxis Ocean, chartered by Cargill, is the first vessel to be retrofitted with two WindWings, which are large wing sails measuring up to 37.5m in height that can be fitted to the deck of cargo ships to harness the power of wind. Produced by industrialisation partner Yara Marine Technologies, the sails are expected to generate average fuel savings of up to 30% on new build vessels, which could be even higher if used in combination with alternative fuels. The installation of the wings took place at the COSCO shipyard in China and the Pyxis Ocean is now on the water, conducting her maiden voyage.
Jan Dieleman, President Cargill Ocean Transportation said: “The maritime industry is on a journey to decarbonise—it’s not an easy one, but it is an exciting one. At Cargill we have a responsibility to pioneer decarbonising solutions across all our supply chains to meet our customer’s needs and the needs of the planet. A technology like WindWings doesn’t come without risk, and as an industry leader – in partnership with visionary shipowner Mitsubishi Corporation – we are not afraid to invest, take those risks and be transparent with our learnings to help our partners in maritime transition to a more sustainable future.”
The installation demonstrates a step-change in attitudes towards technologies that can enable an energy transition for existing vessels. The WindWings project, which is co-funded by the European Union as part of the CHEK Horizon 2020 initiative, can help the industry meet those targets by offering a retrofit solution that is capable of decarbonising existing vessels, which is particularly relevant given that 55% of the world’s bulker fleets are up to nine years in age.
The performance of the WindWings will be closely monitored over the coming months to further improve the design, operation, and performance, with the aim that the Pyxis Ocean will be used to inform the scale-up and adoption across not only Cargill’s fleet but the industry as a whole. BAR Technologies and Yara Marine Technologies are already planning to build hundreds of wings over the next four years and BAR Technologies is researching new builds with improved hydrodynamic hull forms.
John Cooper, BAR Technologies CEO, said: “If international shipping is to achieve its ambition of reducing CO2 emissions, then innovation must come to the fore. Wind is a near marginal cost-free fuel and the opportunity for reducing emissions, alongside significant efficiency gains in vessel operating costs, is substantial. Today is the culmination of years of pioneering research, where we’ve invested in our unique wind sail technology and sought out a skilled industrialization partner in Yara Marine Technologies, in order to provide vessel owners and operators with an opportunity to realise these efficiencies.”
The WindWing project is part of a project that has received funding from the EU Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 955286. By harnessing the power of wind, WindWings can help vessel owners meet new CII rules. As wind power is not only zero emissions but is also non-depleting and hugely predictable, it offers significant efficiency gains in vessel operating costs. On an average global route, WindWings can save 1.5t of fuel per WindWing daily – with the possibility of saving more on trans-ocean routes. This can translate into vessel owners saving HFO at about US$800/t, which will become even more important when saving against future fuels which will undoubtedly realise more.
