Fair winds for wind propulsion
Conference/JournalMARIN Report 137
Date31 okt. 2023
Wind propulsion is steadily gaining traction. With many wind propulsion device makers investing in their production process, the growth is predicted to accelerate even more.
At the start of 2023, there were about 24 commercial ships with wind propulsion, which will double during the year. Most of the ships being equipped with wind propulsion obtain overall fuel and greenhouse gas emission savings of roughly 5% - 15%. But interestingly we are now seeing several projects with serious commitment that are aiming for wind propulsion to deliver the majority of the thrust (on average).
With this amount of development, good predictions, rules and regulations are increasingly important. Joined by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), MARIN started a series of Wind-assisted Ship Propulsion (WiSP) Joint Industry Projects in 2019, which are now about to wrap up their second phase.
At the start of 2023, there were about 24 commercial ships with wind propulsion, which will double during the year. Most of the ships being equipped with wind propulsion obtain overall fuel and greenhouse gas emission savings of roughly 5% - 15%. But interestingly we are now seeing several projects with serious commitment that are aiming for wind propulsion to deliver the majority of the thrust (on average).
With this amount of development, good predictions, rules and regulations are increasingly important. Joined by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), MARIN started a series of Wind-assisted Ship Propulsion (WiSP) Joint Industry Projects in 2019, which are now about to wrap up their second phase.
Contact
Rogier Eggers
Senior Project Manager
EEDI and EEXI standards
So far, the only open standard that is used to rate ships is the EEDI and EEXI. The standard includes wind statistics that should represent worldwide average conditions. In 2021, the IMO updated the standard mandating that only 50% of the wind conditions with the best wind propulsion must be used. This provides an incentive for wind propulsion as better wind statistics will yield a better overall performance in EEDI and EEXI.
MARIN reused the WASP Ecoliner concept
Tags
wind propulsion