Anemoi to fit top ore carrier with rotor sails

The UK’s Anemoi will retrofit four Flettner rotor sails to U-Ming ore carrier Grand Pioneer, which, at 324,963dwt, is one of the world’s largest bulk carriers.

At 35m in height, the Anemoi rotors will be some of the largest ever installed, conferring fuel savings of 10-12% on routes between China and Brazil. Offset from the bulk carrier’s centre, the sails will be capable of folding down along the vessel’s beam, allowing easy access to the ship’s hatch openings for cargo operations.

Rotor sails work to create successive layers of laminar flow across the sail’s surface using friction, generating airflow comparable to that across an aircraft’s wing to generate lift, but over a much smaller surface area.

“These state-of-the-art rotor sails will play a key role in our decarbonisation strategy and will complement our portfolio of existing emission-reducing technologies, including a fleet of LNG dual-fuel vessels,” said C. K. Ong, President of U-Ming. “In addition, we will continue to research other emission-lowering pathways such as carbon capture systems and retrofitting conventional vessels to methanol dual-fuel.

“We look forward to continuing working with like-minded partners like Anemoi, to help us reach our target of net zero.”