Topic, Tsuneishi Shipbuilding and OceanWings announced the completion of OceanWings rigid wingsail installation aboard the ultramax bulk carrier Maria Topic.
Retrofitted at Tsuneishi Shipbuilding in Japan, the vessel now returns to commercial service equipped with OceanWings’ wind propulsion technology.
OceanWings and Topic will share its first operational insights during SMM Hamburg in September 2026, providing an initial look at the vessel’s behaviour in commercial service.
The retrofit of Maria Topic was carried out with the support of the European WHISPER (Wind Energy Harvesting for Ship Propulsion Assistance and Power) project, funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme.
WHISPER brings together 13 partners from six European countries to develop and validate modular retrofit solutions combining wind-assisted propulsion and renewable onboard energy systems, accelerating the decarbonization of commercial shipping.
“Maria Topic is the latest proof that our technology is delivering where it matters most: in commercial operation,” said Emmanuel Schalit, chief executive officer of OceanWings.
“We designed OceanWings to be simple, robust and adapted to the realities of bulk shipping. This project marks an important industrial milestone for OceanWings, demonstrating our ability to manufacture, deliver and deploy our technology at commercial scale,” he added.
