Smart Green Shipping secures £1M from Drax

Renewable energy leader Drax Group (Drax) and Smart Green Shipping are partnering to use innovative FastRig technology which could be used to decarbonise the shipping sector.

The project will see Drax invest £1m in the initiative, matched by funding from the UK Government’s Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC) grant, which will see Smart Green Shipping’s, lightweight, retractable wingsail, installed on a vessel, with a view to demonstrating how the technology can reduce fuel consumption and resulting emissions by up to 30% per year.

Smart Green Shipping is currently undertaking sea trials of FastRig on one of Nuclear Transport Solutions’ specialist vessels, the Pacific Grebe - a purpose-built ship designed to carry nuclear cargo around the world safely. The sea trials will conclude by the end of October and will provide Smart Green Shipping with accurate, independently verified performance data.

The greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from shipping contribute around 3% of all global emissions, having risen 20% over the last decade. An earlier feasibility study conducted in partnership with Drax demonstrated potential fuel savings on ships equipped with FastRig of up to 30% per year on transatlantic routes.

If the latest demonstration is successful, work to install the technology on a commercial biomass vessel can begin, helping to decarbonise this hard to abate sector. The technology could also prove vital to further reducing supply chain emissions from the bulk transport of Drax’s sustainable biomass, which is used to produce around 8% of Britain’s renewable power.

Drax aims to become a carbon negative company by 2030 by installing Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) at Drax Power Station, in Yorkshire. The power station has already been transformed by using sustainable biomass instead of coal, and the application of BECCS could enable Drax to further reduce its emissions by permanently removing up to eight million tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere each year.

Drax’s investment in the project will also be used to develop Smart Green Shipping’s suite of wind-assist solutions. This includes FastRoute, an industry-first digital system co-created with the University of Southampton, that combines artificial intelligence with high-performance computing to analyse weather data and optimise routes for ships equipped to harness wind power. Using historical and forecast weather data, FastRoute accurately predicts how FastRig will perform, optimising journeys for FastRig-enabled ships and giving investors confidence in fuel savings. Research shows that optimised weather routes significantly reduce fuel usage and GHG emissions.

Diane Gilpin, CEO and founder of Smart Green Shipping said: “Wind is abundant, free, and exclusively available to any ship equipped to use it. Modern 21st century easily retrofittable wing sails lower the cost of propelling ships, which reduces the dependency on commodity-based fuels – whether fossil or alternative fuels – and improves supply chain certainty. Smart Green Shipping shares a joint mission with Drax Group to use renewables to move renewables. We are immensely grateful for the support from Drax Group to create seamless and easy-to-access wind solutions for cargo owners and ship owners. The first commercial installation of FastRig is incredibly exciting and an important milestone as we derisk the transition to wind for the whole shipping ecosystem.”

Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO said: “Smart Green Shipping’s technology represents a landmark moment for the maritime energy transition and Drax is proud to provide this investment, which re-affirms our commitment to becoming a carbon-negative business by 2030. We look forward to continuing our longstanding partnership as we work together on this exciting project, which could allow us to reduce emissions from the shipping of sustainable biomass and help to decarbonise a crucial part of our global supply chain.”