The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) Maritime Administrator has awarded an Approval in Principle (AiP) to Anemoi Marine Technologies for their rotor sail systems.
The AiP was issued after a comprehensive review of a 210,000 dwt Newcastlemax bulk carrier designed by Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI), thereby validating Anemoi’s four Rotor Sails (measuring 5 meters (m) x 35 m) with a folding deployment system and six Rotor Sails (measuring 5 m x 30 m) with a bespoke rail deployment system.
The review also included a technical assessment of how the installation of rotor sails in both configurations will impact the vessel’s Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) calculations, with an estimated improvement of 20% for the rail system and 17% for the folding deployment system for the vessel’s EEDI.
“We are very pleased to award this AiP as the Anemoi Rotor Sail systems provide a means for the commercial shipping industry of today to once again leverage wind energy as a means of propulsion and to reduce its carbon footprint,” Jasbir Jaspal , Deputy Commissioner of Maritime Affairs, RMI Maritime Administrator said.
“Wind propulsion has found its place in modern commercial shipping and this partnership is the latest step in demonstrating the positive impact of Rotor Sails. We look forward to a close and long-standing relationship with one of the world’s leading flag States as we all continue to work together to boost decarbonisation efforts in shipping and improve vessel efficiency goals,” Kim Diederichsen , Chief Executive Officer of Anemoi, said.
Anemoi’s rotor sails have been installed on board a number of RMI flagged vessels. Installation of Anemoi’s rail deployment system was completed in June 2023 on the 82,000 DWT TR Lady Kamsarmax bulk carrier.
The 400,000 dwt Sohar Max very large ore carrier is scheduled for completion in mid-2024 with Anemoi’s folding deployment system.
. The installation of three Anemoi rotor sails on board TR Lady is expected to save more than 10% on fuel and emissions annually, while the inclusion of sails onboard Sohar Max is expected to reduce CO2 equivalent emissions by up to 3,000 tonnes per year.
Ship owners are increasingly turning to rotor sails as an energy saving technology to ensure their vessels meet critical international emission reduction targets, including EEDI/Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) and the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII).