Louis Dreyfus Armateurs selects shipyard for wind-assisted roros backed by Airbus charter
French family-owned shipowner Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LDA) has selected China’s Wuchang Shipbuilding to build three roro vessels which will serve Airbus, the world’s biggest planemaker as part of its renewed chartered fleet.
Under the deal, announced last October, LDA is to build, own and operate three modern, low-emission sips, supported by wind-assisted propulsion.
The ships transport aircraft subassemblies between production facilities in Europe and the US.
The newbuilds will be powered by a combination of six Flettner rotors – large, rotating cylinders that generate lift thanks to the wind, and two dual-fuel engines running on diesel oil and e-methanol. Routing software will also optimise the vessels’ journey across the Atlantic, maximising wind propulsion and avoiding drag caused by adverse ocean conditions.
According to initial specifications, each new transatlantic vessel will have the capacity to transport around 70 feu and six single-aisle aircraft sub assembly sets – wings, fuselage, engine pylons, horizontal and vertical tail planes – compared to three to four sets with current cargo ships.
The new fleet, which is expected to enter into service in 2026, will be gradually renewed and is expected to reduce average annual transatlantic CO2 emissions from 68,000 to 33,000 tonnes by 2030. This is expected to contribute to Airbus’ commitment to reduce its overall industrial emissions by up to 63% by the end of the decade – compared to 2015 level.
