Oldendorff and Norsepower have announced an agreement to use Norsepower Rotor Sails™ to further reduce CO₂ emissions a modern bulk carrier. The vessel Dietrich Oldendorff  is to be outfitted with three 24m x 4m Norsepower Rotor Sails™ by mid-2024. It is contracted to be employed on a North Pacific trade route to Asia.

The Norsepower Rotor Sail is a radically modernized, digital-era version of the Flettner rotor. It uses a minimal amount of the ship’s electric power to actively rotate the cylinder-shaped rotors on the ship’s deck. Rotation, together with wind, packs the air behind the sail and creates powerful thrust – saving fuel and reducing emissions. The huge, spinning rotors are partly manufactured from approximately 342,000 plastic bottles.

The product has already been used by customers for about 10 years and has 310,000+ operating hours on ships operated by some of the world’s best-known shipping companies and charterers, delivering 21,000+ tons of CO₂ emissions reduction so far. The installation on the Dietrich Oldendorff will take place in Q2/2024.

Oldendorff’s cooperation with Norsepower is what green shipping stands for.  Renowned companies work with new, innovative products to make sure that future generations are left with a planet that is in good condition. Neither company can make this kind of quantum leap alone; both huge fleets with lots of experience and the latest technological breakthroughs are needed.

Torsten Barenthin, Director of Research & Development, Oldendorff, comments: “We are extremely excited about reducing fuel consumption and emissions by harnessing the power of the wind with Norsepower Rotor Sails™, a proven energy-saving product.”

Tuomas Riski, CEO of Norsepower, adds: “Oldendorff is a dream customer for Norsepower in more than one way: a family-owned, legendary, company with over 100 years operating in the industry and around 700 vessels on the water today. Oldendorff is making green shipping a reality today and is the best partner we could have on our journey towards the zero-carbon industry. I wholeheartedly welcome Oldendorff’s commitment to Norsepower’s mission of decarbonizing shipping and look forward to the next possibilities for cooperation!”