5 articles
Hull, wind, nuclear and emerging
The large-ship wind-assisted fleet passed 100 vessels in 2026, with IWSA reporting 116 ships in service and around 100 more units on order at SMM in September 2026. Class-assessed results from Bureau Veritas and DNV put annual fuel savings at roughly 5-15% per ship, while peak-voyage figures of 20-37% are not annual averages.
Hull, wind, nuclear and emerging
Air lubrication systems pump air under a ship's flat bottom to cut frictional resistance, and Silverstream alone reports more than 250 orders and over 150 ships running. Vendors claim 5-12% net savings, but the Shell trial and Grimaldi's fleet data point to a realistic 3-7% net on full-form hulls.
Hull, wind, nuclear and emerging
Nuclear ship propulsion is mature for navies and for Russia's Atomflot icebreaker fleet, but commercial cargo shipping remains pre-commercial. The IMO agreed in 2025 to rewrite its 1981 nuclear merchant ship code with adoption targeted around 2030, while HD Hyundai, CSSC and Core Power pursue molten salt and sodium fast reactor designs.
Hull, wind, nuclear and emerging
Hull and propulsion efficiency measures range from engine power limits and slow steaming to bulbous bow and propeller retrofits, premium coatings, hull cleaning and weather routing. Verified data favour bow and propeller packages at 14-18% in model tests, while DNV puts the fleet-wide potential at up to 16% by 2030.
Hull, wind, nuclear and emerging
Among emerging marine propulsion concepts, onboard carbon capture, commercial sail cargo ships, autonomous electric vessels and shore power all have real sea demonstrations from 2023 to 2026. Superconducting and magnetohydrodynamic drives remain at prototype level, with no demonstration found since a Chinese MHD test in 2017.