EcoNavis gets US funding to develop fuel saving system

EcoNavis Solutions has made a rudder and propeller system that it claims can reduce fuel consumption on ships.

IMAGE: A vessel moving into Galveston Bay from the Gulf of Mexico. Getty Images

EcoNavis has developed a system with a twisted rudder, propeller hub and propeller blades that can make a vessel sail more efficiently in the water by reducing the shaft power needed and its fuel consumption.

Speaking to ENGINE, EcoNavis said, "The metric is typically [measured in] reduction of required shaft power (or fuel consumption) at a given speed."

It will test the system on vessels and workboats operating in the Gulf of Mexico.

"Early installations have shown ~2.7-4% [shaft power reductions] in normal service, with higher values observed in tightly controlled comparisons," the company added.

The company has received $500,000 in federal funding to support a full-scale retrofit and validation programme on a designated workboat.

It aims to sell its systems to shipping companies with series of deep-sea vessels, like handysize bulkers or container feeder series.

By Gautamee Hazarika

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