MOL secures LR approval for wind-assisted LNG carrier design

Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has secured approval from classification society Lloyd’s Register for two LNG carriers featuring wind-assisted propulsion systems (WAPS).

IMAGE: Illustration of wind-assisted LNG carrier concept. MOL

The approval applies to a new 174,000 cbm LNG carrier design, jointly developed with South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI).

Each vessel will be fitted with four 49-metre wind hard sail units. Detailed construction design is now in progress.

Preliminary estimates on the North America–Europe route suggest the sails could cut fuel use by up to 30% per voyage, with average annual savings of 15–20%, according to MOL.

However, the company has not revealed additional details, such as the delivery timeline or the delivery location of the vessels.

By Tuhin Roy

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