World News
Technology Firm Promises Bunker Savings of €50,000 per Month
Finnish technology company The Switch says it has launched a new drive train technology for merchant ships that can improve energy efficiency and save ship owners up to €50,000 ($69,000) per month in fuel costs.
The drive trains use the company's "permanent magnet" technology to improve the efficiency of electrical generation, allowing less use of auxiliary generators and letting the main engines operate at variable speeds and generate energy.
The technology is particularly helpful for 2-stroke engines, The Switch said.
"Soaring fuel prices, global overcapacity and lower profit margins are forcing shipbuilders to rethink conventional power configurations," said President and CEO Jukka-Pekka Mäkinen.
"Our drive train technology is a game changing opportunity for hybrid propulsion systems, namely in the large merchant shipping sector, where 2-stroke main engines are the preferred type of prime mover."
Permanent magnet generator machines, which are already used in other industries, are lightweight and small compared with other technology and can operate under harsh conditions, The Switch said.
Last year, Rolls-Royce announced the use of permanent magnet technology in a tunnel thruster that it said can increase the power output of a propeller by 25 percent.
Key Bunker Prices More
| VLSFO | MGO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $/mt | +/- | $/mt | +/- | |
| Singapore | 502.00 | 4.50 | 617.00 | 5.50 |
| Rotterdam | 457.50 | 2.50 | 623.50 | 6.50 |
| Houston | 469.00 | 3.50 | 623.00 | 2.00 |
| Fujairah | 494.50 | 6.50 | 715.50 | 5.50 |
| Global 20 Ports Average | 526.00 | 3.00 | 712.50 | 11.50 |
| Global 4 Ports Average | 481.00 | 4.00 | 645.00 | 4.50 |
| Global Average Bunker Price | 569.00 | 2.00 | 750.00 | 5.50 |
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