CLdN Ro-Ro, the Luxembourg based logistics specialist for sea, rail, and road, announced that the MV Delphine as Afloat reported a year ago has since been successfully fitted with a rotor-sail wind propulsion system.

Delphine (along with Celine), is one of the world's largest short-sea RoRo vessels, and now is the first vessel in CLdN fleet to be fitted with the system. Last month the vessel returned to service from Zeebrugge, Belgium and from where Afloat adds they operate to Dublin Port and the Port of Cork.

The MV Delphine is a vessel with a cargo capacity of over 8,000 lane meters and transits between the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe.

The vessel is the largest and one of the most fuel-efficient short sea roll-on / roll-off (ro-ro) vessel operating in the world today with 28 grammes of CO2 emitted per tonne of cargo shipped per km travelled. With two 35mx5m rotor sails deployed, the ship will emit even less greenhouse gas going forward thanks to an emission reduction saving of up to 10%.

The rotor sails, which can be installed on new vessels or retrofitted on existing ships, incorporate a modernised version of the Flettner rotor, a spinning cylinder that uses the Magnus effect to harness wind power to add forward thrust to a ship.

The solution is fully automated and detects whenever the wind is strong enough to deliver fuel and emission savings, at which point the sails start automatically. The sails are also tiltable, allowing the vessel to pass under bridges and maintaining operational flexibility.

CLdN will work with the Maritime Technology Division at Ghent University to study the performance of the sails on the MV Delphine in the coming months.

Gary Walker, Chief Operating Officer, CLdN RoRo, commented: “CLdN is the top performer amongst its ro-ro shipping peers in Northwest Europe, producing the lowest CO2 emissions per tonne of freight carried with its fleet of modern ships. By investing in technologically advanced ships and terminals, CLdN enables its customers to improve their carbon footprint and support them in making their supply chains more efficient and robust.2

He added “the rotor sails will maximise our fuel and emissions savings on the MV Delphine and we will use this project to help determine how the technology could be deployed on the current CLdN fleet and our new-build vessels. Delphine’s redeployment to the fleet will help meet the current high levels of customer demand.”

As Irish hauliers call for more direct services to mainland Europe given a post-Brexit, it is in these UK domestic waters that plans to replace the Isles of Scilly ferry linking Cornwall are underway likewise of those ferries serving Ireland-France, writes Jehan Ashmore.

The current Isle of Scilly passenger cargo-ferry is the Scillionian III which dates to 1977 having been launched by Appledore Shipbuilders. The north Devon shipyard under Babcock Marine built patrol vessels for the Irish Naval Service and modular construction for the UK Royal Navy's newest aircraft carriers. Recently the facility was acquired by Belfast based Harland & Wolff.

Afloat.ie highlights that this year the Isles of Scilly Steamship (Group) celebrates it's centenary operating the lifeline service for islanders, esssential freight plus seasonal tourists between Penzance Harbour and Hugh Town on St. Mary's. This island is one of the larger isles of the sand-fringed archipelago located between the Altantic Ocean and English Channel.

Scillonian III's passage time, offering scenic Cornish scenery, involves a journey of around 2hrs and 45 minutes, though the company operates airline services too from Land's End, Newquay and Exeter in neigbouring Devon.

In 2017, Scillionian III marked forty years of loyal service and in that time, the 1,255 gross tonnage ferry has covered more than half a million miles, and by 2019 transported more than 4.5 million passengers. The ship has a capacity for 486 and a crew 18 who operate for eight months a year (March-November) and where the 4-deck ferry has developed a loyal and dedicated following of fans given the custom-built vessel remains the longest serving ferry in the Steamship's history.

According to CornwallLive.ie, the veteran vessel is to be replaced by a new ‘greener, more efficient’ passenger ferry.

Ship designer BMT has been awarded a new contract with the Isles of Scilly Steamship Group (ISSG) for vessel design and consultancy services that will provide the “next generation of essential life-line travel and freight services to the Isles of Scilly”.

The ISSG requires a flexible vessel design solution to run between the harbours of Penzance and St Mary’s, in addition to an onward freight supply chain from St Mary’s to the off islands of St Martins, Tresco, Bryher and St Agnes.

A spokesperson for BMT said: “The custom designs will be optimised to meet the future requirements of the islands, and to meet the expanding needs of the local communities, businesses and visitors, to increase tourism, and attract a new generation of visitors to the islands.”

BMT, together with the ISSG, will be working hand-in-hand with the community through public consultation to develop future designs that will benefit and support the residents of the Isles of Scilly for years to come.

More reading on plans for the newbuild development click here.