Recent testing of Blue Visby, a platform designed to achieve shipboard greenhouse gas emission reductions in shipping, has yielded positive results.
Reducing emissions on ships
During March and April of this year, the bulk carriers M/V Gerdt Oldendorff and M/V Begonia participated in these assessments, focusing on optimizing ocean routes to decrease CO₂ emissions. The results for the M/V Gerdt Oldendorff achieved a reduction of 28.2%, while the M/V Begonia achieved 12.9%, a significant saving of 17.3% on average, related to the 14-knot service speeds of both ships.
[post_relacionado]Likewise, the M/V Gerdt Oldendorff reduced its emissions by 7.9% at a planned speed of 12 knots, with the potential to achieve 28.2% if it had accelerated to 14 knots to meet a Laycan. These series of tests function as a simulation of real stresses in the direction of each vessel.
CEO Christian Wounlund detailed that all Blue Visby components were successfully tested, including software, operations and profit-sharing mechanisms. Although both the Virtual Pilot Programand Prototype Testing will continue in the coming months, it is expected that commercial implementation can be rolled out this year.
Results of Blue Visby prototypes
Each test on the CBH prototypes were consistent with previous studies. During the “2023 Pilot Program”, ten trips were made, which achieved an average potential savings of 18.9% in CO₂. Also, in some retrospective simulations of 284 trips between the end of 2021 and mid-2023, an average savings of 25.6% in CO₂ emissions was recorded.
The company’s proposals is to seek to eliminate the practice of“Sail Fast Then Wait“(SFTW), a common strategy used by ships to get to their destination as quickly as possible. This practice contributes to 20% of the carbon footprint of maritime transport and cannot be solved by individual vessels or bilateral agreements, but requires a systemic solution.
It also proposes Blue Visby Solution intertwines software, operations and contracts to systematically optimize the ocean voyages of participating vessels, thereby achieving CO₂ efficient emission reductions. The Blue Visby consortium, coordinated by NAPA Oy and Stephenson Harwood LLP, has progressed through several stages, from academic studies to proof-of-concepts, backward simulations, virtual pilots and finally prototype testing.
The future of decarbonization strategies
Blue Visby Consortium coordinators Haris Zografakis and Pekka Pakkanen stressed that prototype testing proves to be a central solution in any decarbonization strategy for all industry stakeholders, including shipowners, charterers, traders and ports.
In addition, Blue Visby was not found to interfere with weather routing, voyage planning or berthing timing, all of which remained under the control of the participants. The operational robustness of the solution prevented interruptions during the test, even when one of the vessels had to be diverted.
The Consortium plans to expand prototype testing to more participants and segments in the maritime market and to continue to expand its expertise through its services.
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Source: Blue Visby Solution