Aircraft manufacturer Airbus will equip one of the vessels it uses to transport aircraft subassemblies, chartered from shipowner Louis Dreyfus Armateurs, with wind-assisted propulsion technology.
The eSAIL, developed by Spain-based firm bound4blue, creates as much as six to seven times more lift than a conventional rigid sail. It consists of a sail-like vertical surface and an electric-powered air suction system that helps the airflow to re-adhere to the sail, generating additional lift and thereby reducing the load on the ship’s main engines.
Three 22 m-high eSAILs will be fitted aboard Ville de Bordeaux, ahead of a six-month performance monitoring period starting early 2024. Ville de Bordeaux regularly ferries A320 subassemblies from Europe to Mobile in the USA for final assembly. According to bound4blue estimations, these eSAILs could deliver fuel and CO2 emissions savings of up to 560 tonnes and 1,800 tonnes, respectively, for this ship annually.
The sail technology is in support of Airbus’ plan to halve CO2 emissions from its maritime operations by 2030, compared to a 2015 baseline. Nicolas Chrétien, head of sustainability and environment at Airbus, said, “this technology looks promising and we are eager to start testing it in real conditions by the end of the year.”
David Ferrer, chief technical officer at bound4blue, said: “This deployment will mark the first-ever fixed suction sail installation on a ro-ro ship, demonstrating that suction sails can be deployed on ships with high weather deck and large windage area, not compromising the vessel’s stability.”
