Japanese giant Marubeni picks bound4blue’s suction sails to power its Panamax bulk carrier

bound4blue and MMSL PTE. LTD., a wholly owned subsidiary of Marubeni Corporation based in Singapore, have signed an agreement to install in 2023/24 four suction sails on the Crimson Kingdom, being the first wind-assisted vessel owned by Marubeni.

According to the preliminary studies, the 229-meter length Panamax bulk carrier will be retrofitted with four 26-metre-high eSAILs^®, expected to be the largest suction sails ever built and installed on a vessel. After the installation, the vessel will be operated by MaruKlav Management Inc., which is a Panamax Pool company jointly owned by Marubeni and Torvald Klaveness Group, a major shipping company in Norway.

The suction sails are expected to reduce the ship’s fuel costs and annual CO₂ emissions by up to 20 percent in favorable trade routes, while improving at the same time the vessel’s EEXI and CII.

“The installation on Crimson Kingdom will probe the potential of our suction sails on bulk carriers, a strategic segment for our company. This agreement with Marubeni will enable us to scale up our technology to the next level, installing our 26-metre units on a bulk carrier for the first time and giving us the opportunity to partner with one of the most important international shipowners”, commented José Miguel Bermúdez, CEO of bound4blue.

Yasutomo Miyake, General Manager, Ship Project Dept. of Marubeni says: “Marubeni is aspiring to become a Forerunner in Green Business, and we will continue to contribute on the reduction of GHG emissions and realization of a decarbonized society by actively participating in projects that represent a benefit for the environment. For that reason, we are partnering with bound4blue to install their suction sails on the Crimson Kingdom, due to the financial potential that their technology represents for our fleet while having a high decarbonisation impact.”