Wind-assisted cargo ship debuts at SMM

The 2,850 dwt Eems Traveller cargo vessel, owned by Amasus, will showcase its two 17m eSAILS suction sales developed by Spain-based bound4blue.

This turnkey solution was installed in two phases, with the sail foundations fitted during a scheduled stop in the Netherlands for a five-year class renewal survey, before the sails themselves were installed in just four hours at the Port of Bilbao.

“The twin sails installed in July 2023 were, at the time, the largest ever suction sails seen in maritime,” said David Ferrer, co-founder and chief technology officer, bound4blue.

“Operations to date have delivered a wealth of in-depth data to demonstrate their tangible environmental impact.

“Given the impact of regulations such as EU ETS, CII and the upcoming FuelEU Maritime move, I can’t think of a better time to push wind power up the shipping agenda.”

eSAILs are suitable for both newbuilds and retrofitting and can be used by a wide variety of vessel types such as tankers, bulkers, RoRos, cruise ships, ferries, gas carriers, and general cargo vessels.

The technology works by dragging air across an aerodynamic surface to generate propulsive efficiency, with zero operational input from crew.

Lloyd’s Register has now also been tasked with conducting a third-party evaluation to verify achieved performance and savings on board Eems Traveller.

Other recent eSAIL agreements have been reached with major names such as Eastern Pacific Shipping, Louis Dreyfus Company and Odfjell, with installations scheduled in the coming months.