Norsepower looking to expand rotor sail market in China

Finnish wind propulsion specialist Norsepower has partnered with China’s COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry Equipment (Nantong) (CHIC) to accelerate the serial production, sales, installation, and service of its rotor sails in the region.

Building on the ‘world’s first’ dedicated rotor sail factory opened in Dafeng, China, last year, Norsepower has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with CHIC to enhance its ability to meet growing global demand.

The MoU entails leveraging CHIC’s resources in shipbuilding and offshore equipment to drive innovation in wind propulsion and further integrate Norsepower’s rotor sails into the regional market.

The partnership aims to provide shipping companies with practical, cost-effective solutions to reduce fuel consumption and emissions in line with tightening IMO regulations, Norsepower explained.

Heikki Pöntynen, CEO of Norsepower, commented: “This agreement marks a significant step forward in expanding access to wind propulsion solutions in China. By combining Norsepower’s technology leadership with CHIC’s shipbuilding expertise, we are creating a strong foundation for advancing sustainable shipping. We will achieve breakthroughs in both product supply efficiency and application expansion. We look forward to building on this collaboration and exploring further opportunities together.”

Zhang Jianxin, Deputy General Manager of CHIC, added: “We are excited to partner with Norsepower to advance wind propulsion technology. This cooperation will enhance innovation across product design, manufacturing, and business development, ensuring we deliver high-quality, energy-efficient solutions for the shipping industry.”

In other recent news, Norsepower rotor sails were selected to be installed on a methanol hybrid newbuild roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessel owned by Swedish ferry company Stena Line.

Wind propulsion is gaining momentum as the shipping industry strives toward climate neutrality. Significant economic and climate benefits of using wind-assisted propulsion to power global shipping were identified in a new report by marine NGO Seas At Risk.

The ‘Wind First!’ study shows that retrofitting sails on large, existing vessels can save close to half a million US dollars on fuel costs, and reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions by up to 12%, annually.

Classification society DNV also found that orders for wind-assisted propulsion systems (WAPS) are set to accelerate in the coming years due to a surge in industry interest combined with systems builders and yards scaling up production and installation capacity.