A Dutch-flagged 2,850-dwt general cargo vessel Eems Traveller, owned by Amasus, is the next in line to be equipped with two eSAILs developed by bound4blue. The system, categorised as a suction sail, is based on the use of a thick aerodynamic profile and smart suction to increase the propulsive efficiency, resulting in a system that produces seven times more lift than an airplane wing.

These sails represent a new and improved generation of the system installed on the La Naumon, delivering higher efficiency with the same size. Standing at a height of 17 meters, they continue to hold the record as the largest suction sail ever built and installed on a ship. In fact, the installation of these two sails on the Eems Traveller also marks the largest installation of fixed suction sails on a ship to date.

Two-stage installation

The installation was executed in two distinct phases. One year ago, during a scheduled regular dry-dock of the vessel, the foundations for the eSAILs were manufactured and installed in The Netherlands. The verticalisation manoeuvre and connection to the reinforcement of the sails was completed in less than four hours at the Port of Bilbao recently.

In between these two phases bound4blue has been monitoring the ship to obtain its baseline performance, which will be used by a third party to assess the fuel and emission savings results in the next 12 months. In this way, scientifically validated results are obtained, which can be used to demonstrate the actual effects of the system in use on board of the vessel and form the basis for any future further development.

Read also: Amasus retrofits EEMS Traveller with bound4blue’s suction sails

José Miguel Bermúdez, CEO of bound4blue, says, “In the same way that we need proven sustainable solutions to decarbonise the industry, we also need to implement them as fast and efficiently as possible. As evidence of this, we have utilised for the first time the port infrastructure to install our systems, demonstrating that shipowners don’t have to wait for the scheduled maintenance of the ship to start reaping the benefits of wind propulsion.”

Arend-Jan Rozema, Managing Director of Amasus, adds, “The joint development of this wind propulsion concept marks an important milestone and contribution to the aspiration in creating a sustainable future. As Amasus, we are proud and delighted to realise this new project together with our partners from bound4blue.”

This installation, approved by Bureau Veritas, has been done within the framework of the Sails for Cargo project, co-funded by Fondo Puertos 4.0 of Puertos del Estado, with the support from Port of Bilbao, Bilbao PortLab and Toro y Betolaza.