Seawing wind propulsion system deployed on “K” Line vessel
Airseas, the French tech pioneer based by former Airbus engineers, has gained orders for 3 extra of its Seawings methods from Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (“K” Line). This will deliver to 5 the variety of “K” Line ships utilizing the Airseas wind propulsion expertise to cut back their emissions.
Under the settlement, the third, fourth and fifth Seawing methods delivered to “K” Line shall be put in on publish panamax bulkers. The two preliminary installations, on capesize bulkers, will see the primary 210,000 dwt vessel fitted with the system in December of this yr, to be adopted by an set up on a newbuild LNG-fueled vessel at the moment being constructed at Nihon Shipyard.
The Seawing methods that shall be put in on the “K” Line vessels include parafoils that fly round 300 meters above the ocean degree, harnessing the ability of the wind to propel the vessel and cut back the primary engine load, aiming to save lots of a mean of 20% gas and emissions.
The methods will use digital twins and superior automation methods, drawing on aerospace experience, to make sure that the Seawing methods could be safely deployed, operated and saved on the push of a button with minimal enter wanted from crew. In addition, Airseas and “K” Line have signed a technological cooperation partnership to combine Seawing and “K” Line’s vessel information platform, Kawasaki Integrated Maritime Solutions, to maximise the efficiency of the methods.
“We have adopted an ambitious net-zero GHG emissions target by 2050 and deploying technologies such as wind propulsion is a key component of our strategy.” stated Michitomo Iwashita, managing govt officer at “K” Line. “We are proud to be partnering with Airseas, a leader in the wind propulsion field, that has done so much to bring the technology into the next generation via the development of Seawing. We look forward to seeing it deployed on our fleets in the coming years.”
Vincent Bernatets, co-founder and CEO of Airseas, commented: “We are proud that “K” Line has chosen us as a long-term associate of their journey in direction of a decrease carbon future, and we’re delighted to see our partnership going one step additional with these new orders and extra technical cooperation actions introduced at present. A real market chief, “K” Line acknowledges that ships being constructed now might want to meet the decarbonization requirements of the 2040s and 2050s, as regulators and prospects step up stress for the business to decarbonize. Wind propulsion methods just like the Seawing assist lay the long-term foundations for the sustainable transport of the long run by lowering emissions proper now, along with delivering a powerful return on funding within the brief time period through gas financial savings.”
