Naval architects, Deltamarin, and innovative marine engineering consultancy, BAR Technologies, have announced that they are once again partnering to lead the way in wind propulsion innovation with new build design, Aframax/LRII.

The announcement comes off the back of previous collaboration on WindWings which, with saving of approximately 1.5 tonnes of fuel per wing per day, will debut on the Pyxis Ocean soon, fresh from being nominated for the Next Generation Ship Award at Nor-Shipping.

Above deck, there have been great strides in design that harnesses the potential of wind propulsion; the next frontier, recognised in this partnership, is to complement this with hull forms modified specifically to maximise wind power. With this new hull design, BAR Technologies and Delatmarin’s early predictions suggest that as much as 10 tonnes of fuel per day can be saved with an Aframax/LRII hull and 4 WindWings using a North America/ Rotterdam roundtrip as an example.

The use of sails to reduce fuel consumption and thereby help decarbonise shipping is a very popular method employed by innovators and vessel owners. However, progress towards maximum efficiency depends upon full consideration of variable factors, such as the type of vessel and the route it is taking. To get closer to the best solution in general, there must be more research on how performance can be improved under the water’s surface.

It is in this area that Deltamarin and BAR Technologies are now pooling their concentration having seen first-hand that a large portion of both existing ships and newbuilds lack optimal hull and propulsion designs for significant wind assistance. Though the project is in its initial phase, BAR Technologies’ history of technical excellence, and Deltamarin’s quality in ship design, give confidence to the assertion that new hull forms, like the Aframax/LRII, that extract significantly more thrust will increase average fuel savings and be the first of many ship designs tailored for wind propulsion.

“Wind is the free fuel, and it is the gauntlet laid down in front of innovators like ourselves to work out how we can displace fossil fuels with wind power” said John Cooper, Chief Executive Officer, BAR Technologies. “It has been a privilege to partner with the best shipyards to retrofit WindWings, and we are especially excited to partner with the best ocean-going naval architects for big ship design in Deltamarin and that the Aframax/LRII is the first of many announcements.”

Esa Jokioinen, Director, Sales and Marketing at Deltamarin, added: “The opportunities moving forward with wind power are vast. Being familiar with BAR Technologies’ expert innovation in wind propulsion, we are delighted to collaborate on what both companies see as the next vital stage for wind-assisted sea travel: hull optimisation. So far, we have made fine progress in harnessing wind power using sails, but we are finding increased performance all the time and, with this hull design, we are witnessing a 15% improvement against our current fleet.”