Oldendorff is installing Norsepower’s Flettner rotor sails on one of its bulkers.
The German shipowner said it will retrofit three rotor sails on board the 100,450-dwt Dietrich Oldendorff (built 2020) this year to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Flettner rotors work through the use of spinning rotors that, while using ship power, generate thrust by harnessing wind passing by the rotor.
The additional thrust will compensate for the small amount of power needed and also allow the engines to be operated at a more economical rating.
The Dietrich Oldendorff operates in the North Pacific.
Norsepower claims extra sustainability in its solution as the rotors will be made partly using plastic bottles.
Other wind propulsion system suppliers have announced an increase in orders, largely due to shipping companies assessing their opportunities for lowering emissions and retaining good vessel ratings under new regulations.
