Case gives clarity on the incorporation of standard terms. Credit: 3D Animation Production Company, Pixabay

As environmental regulations tighten, leveraging practical pathways to decarbonisation is critical for the maritime industry. Baltic Exchange supports shipowners and operators by providing route-specific data and emissions resources on a range of innovative solutions, bringing much-needed clarity and confidence to the industry’s decarbonisation journey.

One such solution lies in harnessing wind power, an abundant, free, and renewable energy resource, to significantly reduce fuel consumption and emissions for commercial vessels. Today’s wind-assisted propulsion system (WAPS) technologies, such as rotor sails and rigid wing sails, are no longer experimental; they are proven, efficient, and ready for deployment at scale.

Despite their huge potential, smaller operators often face challenges in assessing critical data to understand the impact and return on investment of WAPS technologies. To support informed decision-making for shipowners, Baltic Exchange has created route-specific WAP heatmaps as part of its Emissions Calculators that can be used to highlight average fuel savings and help aid the conversation of wind propulsion in vessel operations.

“Our goal is to give shipowners the tools and confidence they need to navigate this complex transition,” Martin Crawford-Brunt, Emissions Lead at Baltic Exchange states.

“Baltic Exchange’s WAP heatmaps are a catalyst for positive change. By demystifying the benefits of WAPS and providing shipowners with actionable insights, Baltic Exchange is fostering a future where wind power is a trusted ally in advancing maritime decarbonisation,” he adds.

“Baltic Exchange is renowned for providing a reliable baseline to the maritime industry, offering standardised vessel descriptions and routes to enable shipping players to make more informed decisions about their own requirements. The inclusion of wind power in our emissions platform is the latest step in how we are offering real-world solutions to navigate a complex problem,” he notes. 

These heatmaps give users projected data about the potential fuel savings for ballast leg, laden leg and round voyages of vessels across a number of Baltic routes. The simulation also includes estimates of how much carbon emissions could be saved with the installation of WAP, enabling ship owners to promote the benefit of reducing  greenhouse gas emissions. 

The below example shows the heatmap for potential savings across a number of Cape routes.  

In order to understand more about the real-world applications of WAPS, Baltic Exchange has partnered with some of the leading players in the field to bring their insights to the platform. These include Anemoi Marine Technologies, the leading developer of rotor sails, and BAR Technologies, the leading provider of rigid sails. Both developers have lent critical data points to Baltic Exchange in order to validate its modelling criteria.

This enables shipowners to have greater decision-making capabilities and further their own understanding of how WAPS can provide major emissions and fuel savings, alongside improved operational efficiency. 

“This partnership with Baltic Exchange provides a vital tool for the global shipping community. We know Anemoi Rotor Sails can reduce a vessel’s fuel consumption and carbon emissions based on our extensive operational experience and more than a decade of Rotor Sail performance results. By teaming up with Baltic Exchange, we can highlight the importance of providing realistic and transparent performance estimations for owners considering wind propulsion for their vessels.,” said Claes Horndahl, Commercial Director at Anemoi Marine Technologies.

John Cooper, CEO of BAR Technologies, noted, “We’re pleased to support Baltic Exchange in providing data that highlights the guaranteed performance of our WindWings®  technology, as verified by DNV-Maritime. Our systems are already demonstrating the real-world impact of wind propulsion technology in cutting fuel consumption and emissions on tankers and bulkers.”

Another partner for the project is the International Windship Association (IWSA), the overarching industry body for WAPS technology companies. Speaking about the collaboration, Gavin Allwright, Secretary General of IWSA, said, “The International Windship Association and our members are keen to work with organisations such as Baltic Exchange to develop tools that help market stakeholders to more clearly define the benefits and potential for wind propulsion installations.

Leveraging Baltic Exchange’s extensive vessel and routing database, along with performance data from a number of IWSA technology provider members to help kick start that engagement process is an important step.

We look forward to expanding this collaboration with more technology providers and simulations in the future.”

Baltic Exchange is committed to helping drive the conversation around maritime sustainability by providing the shipping industry with the type of tangible and real-world data that it has become renowned for. The feature of heatmaps for WAPS, which includes simulated data across a number of Baltic routes, is the latest way in which Baltic Exchange is helping to keep vessel owners ahead of the curve. 

Click here to find out more about Baltic Exchange’s free emissions resources, and select the WIND tab to view the results of this collaboration.