MOL plans to build LNG carrier with Wind Challenger sails

Image: MOL

Japan’s Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) is planning to build a 174,000 cubic meter LNG carrier fitted with Wind Challenger sails and has now received an Approval in Principle (AiP) from ClassNK for its design. It is the first such approval to be granted for an LNG carrier with wind-assisted propulsion.

The design has been jointly developed by MOL and shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean. The 286 x 46 meter ship will feature a GTT membrane-type cargo containment system and the AiP was obtained after MOL, Hanwha Ocean, and ClassNK conducted a risk assessment that comprehensively evaluated factors such as the placement of the Wind Challenger sails and their impact on visibility, emergency operation procedures and other safety considerations. Additionally, GTT evaluated the impact of the sail installation on the cargo tank and confirmed that its structural safety was sufficiently ensured, even when considering the stresses imposed by sails.

The Wind Challenger equipped LNG carrier will be capable of entering LNG terminals worldwide and detailed design work is currently underway.

Jointly developed by MOL and the Oshima Shipbuilding Co., the Wind Challenger is a hard sail that uses state-of-the-art and proprietary technologies that sense wind direction and speed in real time and provide fully automatic control of sail extension, contraction, and rotation. The solution was first deployed on a coal carrier serving Japan’s Tohoku Electric Power Co.

MOL has set a mid-to-long-term target of achieving net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 and plans to launch 25 vessels equipped with the Wind Challenger by 2030 and 80 vessels by 2035.