Cargill Reveals Finding Of World's First Wind-powered Vessel's Maiden Voyage

KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 (Bernama) -- Cargill has revealed exciting results of the six-month test period of the Pyxis Ocean, underscoring the potential for the wind assisted propulsion technology in moving the shipping industry toward renewable energy use.

The MC Shipping Kamsarmax vessel retrofitted with two WindWings large solid wind sails developed by BAR Technologies, has achieved performance consistent with what was predicted which is equivalent to an average of three tonnes of fuel per day.

Cargill’s Ocean Transportation business president, Jan Dieleman said the company is encouraged by the results and has learned a great deal about implementing wind assisted propulsion on dry bulk vessels.

“We are on the leading edge of change in the shipping industry and believe technologies that harness the wind could be an important, cost-effective way to achieve our decarbonisation goals in the short, medium and long-term,” he said in a statement.

The Pyxis Ocean hit open waters in August 2023 and during the first six months of testing it has sailed the Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, North and South Atlantic, and passed Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope.

The ship was retrofitted with two WindWings, which measure 37.5 metres in height and resemble large aeroplane wings which are installed vertically to catch the wind and propel the ship forward, allowing the ship’s engine to be turned down so it can travel at the same speed as a conventional ship using less fuel.

A simple traffic light system tells the crew when to raise or lower the sails, and once raised, the operation is fully automated, whereby sensors onboard constantly measure the wind, and the sails self-adjust to the optimal configuration.

Wind assisted propulsion has potential to be a cost-efficient way of supporting the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) new greenhouse gas strategy. One of the IMOs 2030 targets is to have five percent, striving for 10 percent, of energy coming from very low carbon sources by 2030, and wind assisted propulsion could be an important way of achieving this.

Cargill will continue the testing and experimenting of operational, technical and commercial aspects of the Pyxis Ocean to incorporate the maximum amount of learning into potential design of future installations before scaling up.

-- BERNAMA