Yara Sees 10% Bunker Savings From FuelOpt System

The FuelOpt bridge panel offers direct control of vessel speed, fuel consumption, or engine power. Image Credit: Yara

Engineering firm Yara Marine Technologies has found its FuelOpt propulsion optimisation system can deliver bunker savings of as much as 10%.

The firm has analysed the performance of its system on board the tankers Sten Bothnia and the Ekfjord, finding bunker consumption reduction of more than 10%. The first vessel is owned by Rederiet Stenersen and the second by Ektank.

The analysis was carried out by maritime consultancy NAPA.

The tankers were equipped with controllable pitch propellers, with the fuel consumption savings largely coming from efficiency gains from dynamic optimisation of propeller pitch and engine power.

"These impressive fuel savings demonstrate the success of our emissions reduction strategies – implemented nearly a decade ago – to ensure greener operations onboard our fleet," Christopher Stenersen, an environmental advisor at Rederiet Stenersen, said in the statement.

"With pressing decarbonization targets in shipping and rising demand for ESG reporting, Yara Marine's FuelOpt has allowed us to demonstrate clear and consistent operational improvements, while also enabling us to identify gaps and opportunities in our current procedures.

"The Stenersen fleet was one of the earliest adopters of FuelOpt, completing our fleet-wide implementation between 2014-2016.

"It remains an essential solution for us, which is evident by our decision to install it on 4 more vessels recently added to our fleet."

A boom in demand for fuel-efficiency systems has emerged in the shipping industry over the past two years, driven both by higher bunker prices and by the need to reduce GHG emissions to comply with stricter regulations.