Brunvoll propulsion for the world’s largest sailing ships The Orient Express Silenseas

May 1, 2024

Figure 1. The 220-meter long sailing ship for The Orient Express Silenseas. Illustration: Chantiers de l’Atlantique.

Chantiers de l’Atlantique has chosen Brunvoll as the supplier of main propulsion for Orient Express Silenseas’s new cruise ships, which are going to become the world’s largest sailing ships. The order is for two vessels, with another two as option

The delivery from Brunvoll is a propulsion system consisting of a twin-screw configuration with a controllable pitch propeller with a diameter of 3.9 meters. The propellers are designed to be fully feathering to limit drag while sailing. The propellers will have direct electrical drive, where Brunvoll will supply their Thrust-OD Box, which works as a thrust bearing with a hydraulic system for the controllable pitch propellers.

Orient Express is known as a pioneer within luxury train travel but has now set out to conquer the seven seas with the Silenseas. The sailing cruise ships will have some impressive main particulars; a length of 220 meters, three sail masts with height above 100 meters and a surface area of 1.500 square meters each, and 54 cabins with an average size of 70 square meters.

“This Project confirms Brunvoll being one of the front runners concerning Propulsion design and Main Propulsion efficiency where our skilled hydrodynamicists have been working closely together with Chantiers de l’Atlantique on the development andassessment of different propulsion solutions these spectacular vessels.

A huge thanks from us at Brunvoll to Chantiers de l’Atlantique and the Orient Express for the good cooporation and team effort put into this project. We hope to see them sailing in the Norwegian Fjords sometime!”, says Arnfinn Brautaset, Sales Manager at Brunvoll AS