Taiwan-headquartered shipowner U-Ming Marine Transport Corporation (U-Ming) and UK-based wind propulsion technology provider Anemoi Marine Technologies Ltd. (Anemoi) have completed the rotor sail installation on U-Ming’s Grand Pioneer, a 325,000-dwt very large ore carrier (VLOC).
As disclosed, the four 35m tall, 5m diameter folding (tilting) rotor sails were delivered fully assembled and dynamically balanced from Anemoi’s production base on the Yangtze River and transported by barge to COSCO Zhoushan shipyard.
In a streamlined plug-and-play process unique to Anemoi, the sails were lifted directly onto the deck and secured in place.
Anemoi says this method significantly reduces the shipyard’s scope of work and keeps installation time short.
For this installation, it took only 1.5 days to lift and fix the rotor sails in position onboard, with a further 5 days for commissioning and testing all four rotor sails and folding systems once the shipyard had completed their works during the vessel’s scheduled dry-dock in September 2025.
“U-Ming’s decision to adopt Rotor Sails, particularly as the first in the Taiwanese market to do so, demonstrates their strength, ambition and clear focus on decarbonisation. Our collaboration reflects the growing momentum behind wind propulsion as a critical pathway to lower emission shipping, and we look forward to analysing the performance data from upcoming voyages,” notes Clare Urmston, CEO of Anemoi.
In accordance with the company Anemoi, the vessel (after completion of the installation) will resume deep-sea service between Brazil and China under a long-term charter with Brazilian mining company Vale.
