“Wind propulsion solutions are one of the key low hanging fruit when it comes to decarbonising shipping. Through our work with WiSP and other projects we are endeavouring to work closely with multiple stakeholders in the wind propulsion segment to help make it a robust and credible technology. Joining and working with IWSA and its members is the natural next step and we are looking forward to continuing this voyage together,” commented Patrick Ryan, ABS Senior Vice President, Global Engineering and Technology.

As ABS increases its interaction with wind propulsion, the change is being announced. In June 2020, the classification society published its Wind Assisted Propulsion System Installation guidelines.

ABS has also played a leading role in the implementation of the WiSP initiative, a collaborative industry project designed to help resolve wind-assisted propulsion barriers, develop prediction and validation techniques, and evaluate and recommend changes to the regulatory framework as they relate to wind-assisted systems.

The membership announcement of ABS comes at a critical point in the development cycle for wind propulsion systems as it continues to emerge as a propulsive solution that has major advantages in the industry. It is widely available worldwide as an energy source and needs no new infrastructure, thereby providing an essential source of zero-emission propulsive energy.

Systems are becoming increasingly available and new systems are under development with a strong pipeline and demonstrated savings are already in the 5-20 percent range with more optimization to come. There are also a number of main wind propulsion vessels that will possibly join the fleet in the next couple of years.

Maritime Business World