Swiss based marine engine technology developer WinGD has published a new white paper outlining the steps it believes will enable deep-sea shipping to decarbonize in line with IMO provisions. The guide aims to provide shipowners with an illustration of the choices that can be made with confidence today to drastically reduce emissions, rather than waiting for the emergence of ‘silver bullet’ technologies.

The paper, ‘Navigate the Future with Confidence’, advocates a step-by-step, holistic approach to improving energy efficiency. The use of LNG is one of the single biggest ways to reduce emissions in current vessels and will enable the use of carbon-neutral synthetic or bio-gas when it becomes available. Taking action now is the right choice as simply waiting for the availability of clean fuels won’t be enough. Other technologies also need to be added to help ships reach IMO’s 2050 target.

WinGD Vice President Research & Development Dominik Schneiter said: “The low-speed marine engine will remain the core power provider for deep-sea shipping. The heart of clean propulsion is already in place and the task now is to incorporate the technologies that will help reach zero emissions: carbon-neutral fuels, electrical hybrid power sources, efficiency enhancing digital technologies and optimized ship design.”

The white paper highlights the engine developments that enable the use of clean fuels such as ammonia and methanol by 2025 – notably WinGD’s dual-fuel X-DF engine platform and the recent launch of X-DF2.0 technologies which can halve methane slip and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a further 10%.

WinGD’s development work on electrical hybrid systems is also summarized. The company has developed a comprehensive simulation platform to study hybridization options for all applications and operation patterns. Combinations of two-stroke engines and batteries, linked via power take off/take in systems, are considered in the white paper with a view to reducing installed power, fuel consumption and emissions, allowing for clear better EEDI/ EEXI and eventually also CII ratings.

“By preparing for these future scenarios, WinGD is taking the risk out of engine investments for shipowners and operators,” said Dominik Schneiter. “In uncertain times our extensive research aims to place the future performance and compliance of WinGD engines beyond doubt.”