Wärtsilä Expands 5% Bunker Saving EnergoProFin Tech to Controllable Pitch Propellers

The EnergoProFin is said to produce 5 percent bunker savings for both CPPs and FPPs.

Wärtsilä today announced that its bunker saving EnergoProFin technology is now available for both controllable pitch propellers (CPP) as well as fixed pitch propellers (FPP), something it says was previously considered impossible in the industry.

"Propeller caps with fins have existed for three decades, but their application has so far been primarily on FPPs. The view of the industry has been that applying an energy saving device such as Wärtsilä EnergoProFin to the technologically more challenging CPP would not be possible," the company said.

"Wärtsilä took on the development task and succeeded in creating a product that offers vessels equipped with a CPP an opportunity to reduce their energy consumption."

The EnergoProFin is said to produce 5 percent bunker savings for both CPPs and FPPs.

"The Wärtsilä EnergoProFin is a specially designed propeller cap with hydrofoil section fins on the downstream side of the propeller. It is an innovative energy saving device that can significantly reduce a vessel's fuel consumption as well as its emission levels," Wärtsilä said.

"Such technical innovations play a major role for ship operators who are tackling rising operating costs, as it offers an opportunity to enhance the efficiency of existing assets. By improving their energy efficiency, ship operators can increase their profitability in an environmentally sound way."

The development work was a spin-off of an EU-funded collaborative project between Wärtsilä and nine other companies.