Berge Bulk installs wind-assisted propulsion system on a bulker

Singapore-based dry bulk owner Berge Bulk has retrofitted one of its bulkers with Yara Marine Technologies’ (YMT) wind-assisted propulsion system (WAPS).

PHOTO: Berge Bulk’s bulk carrier Berge Olympus with wing sails. Berge Bulk

The bulk carrier, Berge Olympus, has been retrofitted with four 37.5-metre-high wing sails. The ship is expected to save 6 mt/day of fuel on an average worldwide route, where Berge Olympus would operate, and could reduce CO2 emissions by around 19.5 mt/day, Berge Bulk claims.

Wing sails are WAPS that use aerodynamic principles to produce lift and reduce drag in a vessel's movement.

The vessel will be deployed on the trade route between Brazil and China due to its favourable wind conditions.

Apart from the WAPS, the vessel is equipped with a shaft generator system that is powered by the main engine, thus contributing to fuel savings and emission reductions. The 1-megawatt (MW) shaft generator system will “eliminate the need to operate auxiliary engines while at sea,” Berge Bulk adds.

The move is in sync with Berge Bulk’s aim to attain carbon neutrality by 2025.

“Wind-assisted propulsion has the potential to offer immediate long-term solutions for shipping’s pathway to Net Zero,” YMT’s chief executive Thomas Koniordos says.

Berge Bulk is evaluating the prospect of installing WAPS on “more of its vessels that trade on routes with favourable wind conditions.”

WAPS has been gaining popularity among shipowners as they look for technologies that can boost vessel performance and improve fuel efficiency.

Last month, French shipowner Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LDA) partnered with wind-assisted propulsion technology developer bound4blue to install a suction sail system on a roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessel.

By Tuhin Roy

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