Asia/Pacific News
New HHI Propeller Attachment Promises 2.5% Bunker Savings
South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) last week said that its new Hi-FIN propellor device can reduce bunker consumption by up to 2.5 percent compared with the same type of vessels without the attachment.
To achieve the savings, HHI says the Hi-FIN is attached at the hub of the propeller and works by generating countering swirls that offset the swirls generated by the propeller, thus improving propulsion efficiency.
Savings for a typical 8,600 TEU containership would translate to about $750,000 per year, or $19 million over the 25 year estimated lifetime of the ship, according to HHI.
The performance claim follows a year-long trial of the device installed on a 162,000 cubic metre capacity liquified natural gas (LNG) carrier ordered from Maran Gas.
The shipbuilder reports that orders for Hi-FIN have been placed by ship owners for over 30 vessels to date, and it expects more orders thanks to the company now being able to install the device on everything from LNG carriers to VLCC, LPG carriers, and containerships.
At the end of 2014, after laying off nearly one third of his executive management, president and CEO Kwon Oh-gap announced that he would restore his company's competitiveness and transform it "to be young and energetic."
