Technology group Wartsila has installed a "unique" hybrid power and PV solar energy system on a bulk carrier in collaboration with Marfin Management and solar firm Solbian.
The containerised energy management system with batteries connected to on-weather deck solar panels has been fitted to the Marfin-managed, 59,900-dwt Paolo Topic (built 2016).
Wartsila said the fully integrated HY Module can cut a vessel’s emissions by up to 4% by optimising onboard power production, consumption and management of auxiliary power.
The installation was carried out at the Onomichi Dockyard in Japan and makes the bulker "one of the most technologically advanced vessel of its type in the global fleet," Wartsila said.
The HY module allows the possibility to combine and integrate an energy storage system with additional energy sources, such as solar power, without the need for dry-docking, it added.
Marfin Management chief executive Alex Albertini said the system helps pave the way to a more sustainable future.
"We will be able to provide our customers and partners with the most advanced vessel performance and environmental quality, and it is without compromising operational effectiveness or flexibility," he said.
Wartsila Marine Power added that the system can contribute positively to a ship's position within the International Maritime Organization's Energy Efficiency Existing Ship (EEXI) and Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) indexes.
Giulio Tirelli, the Finnish company's director of business development, said: "This installation represents a truly significant breakthrough in enabling the bulker fleet to increase both its economic competitiveness and environmental performance."
