The NYK Group company NYK Bulkship (Atlantic) N.V. (NBAtlantic), Antwerp based in Belgium, announces that for the first time it will instal a wind-assisted ship-propulsion unit on a bulk carrier engaged in a long-term charter contract with Cargill International S.A. (Switzerland), a subsidiary of Cargill, Incorporated (USA).
NBAtlantic will equip the bulk carrier with the VentoFoil wind-assisted propulsion unit from the Dutch vased windsail producer Econowind B.V.
The VentoFoil unit is expected to help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions during vessel navigation when installed, and NBAtlantic will then collect data on the propulsion generated by this equipment, in addition to meteorological and ocean conditions during navigation, and measure the unit’s effectiveness in collaboration with the charterers Cargill International S.A.
VentoFoil has a 16-meter vertical wing that plays the role of a sail and is sitting on a 20-foot-long flat rack container with no walls. VentoFoil creates propulsion with the pressure difference on both sides of the wing, like an airplane wing,. The unit takes in wind through its suction port and obtains greater propulsion by amplifying the pressure difference. VentoFoil is smaller than similar equipment, keeping it more out of the way of cargo handling. It is also easy to install and relocate, the company mentions.
This initiative is part of NYK’s long-term target also branded as “Sail GREEN” with a goal of net-zero emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) by 2050 for the NYK Group’s oceangoing businesses.
