Stena Line to install rotor sails on methanol-capable RoRo vessel

Finnish cleantech company Norsepower has agreed to supply two rotor sails for Stena Line’s methanol-capable roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessel.

PHOTO: Illustration of Stena Line’s RoRo vessel fitted with rotor sails. Norsepower

The vessel, under construction at China’s Jinling Weihai Shipyard, will be equipped with two 28-meter-high rotor sails. These sails, produced at Norsepower’s new facility in Yancheng, China, will be delivered directly to the shipyard.

Rotor sails, a modern adaptation of Flettner rotors, use the Magnus effect to generate lift by spinning. In favourable wind conditions, they will enable the vessel’s main engine to operate at reduced power while maintaining speed, thereby lowering fuel consumption.

Scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2025, the vessel will operate on the Irish Sea between Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Heysham, England.

Norsepower estimates that the rotor sails could improve fuel efficiency by up to 9% on this route.

By Tuhin Roy

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