Mizuho Leasing to support leasing model for Norsepower WAP installations

The leasing initiative is intended to help ship owners avoid the upfront CAPEX costs that have acted as a barrier to adoption for Norsepower’s wind-assisted propulsion solution for small to medium-sized shipowners and operators.

IINO Lines and Mizuho Leasing have extensive experience in lease financing, including expertise in leasing sustainable technologies, while Norsepower has accumulated almost a decade of experience of successful installations onboard commercial vessels.

The initiative’s focus is to provide shipowners and operators with leasing packages for the Norsepower Rotor Sail which start at a minimum five-year term against a fixed monthly fee. 

Tuomas Riski, CEO, Norsepower, said: “We’re delighted to introduce new, competitively priced leasing services with our partners. By doing so, we could lower upfront capital requirements and encourage vessel owners to take action and upgrade their fleets. Through collaborating, we aspire to offer combined access to significant credit facilities as well as leveraging IINO Lines and Mizuho Leasing’s extensive leasing experience across sustainable technologies, maritime assets and beyond.” 

Ryuichi Osonoe, Director, Senior Managing Executive Officer at IINO Lines, commented: “We have fostered a strong relationship with Norsepower, installing its rotor sails on two of our vessels. Now, we want to make this product more accessible to the industry. We are confident that bringing together our complementary leasing and finance capabilities with Norsepower’s proven product will accelerate the shipping industry’s journey to decarbonisation.” 

Yasuhiko Hashimoto, Managing Executive Officer at Mizuho Leasing, added: “Through our work in other sectors, we have seen first-hand how improving access to finance and providing flexible options for accessing sustainable technologies can make a real-world impact on improving environmental performance. We are excited to apply our experience to the maritime industry and support IINO Lines and Norsepower in achieving our shared ambition to make the use of energy-efficient technologies a scalable reality.”

The Norsepower Rotor Sail is a modernised version of the Flettner rotor. It uses a small amount of the ship’s electric power to rotate cylinder-shaped rotors to generate powerful thrust that saves fuel and reduces emissions. Vessel and cargo owners have already used the product for nearly 10 years, accumulating around 300,000 operating hours of verified performance data that show average fuel consumption savings of between 5-25%, or more in good conditions.