Cargo Neoliner: a wind-powered, sail-powered shipping solution
Equans is participating in the construction of the very first sailing cargo ship for Nantes-based shipowner NEOLINE. The contract, signed with the Turkish shipyard RMK Marine, includes the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) package by Axima Marine experts, with delivery scheduled for 2025. Named Neoliner, the vessel is part of a strategy to decarbonize maritime freight.
With a 3,000 m² sail area, this transatlantic vessel is expected to save between 80% and 90% fuel compared with a vessel of equivalent size. NEOLINE thus aims to meet the challenges posed by climate change.
© NEOLINE/MAURIC
The importance of reconsidering the shipping industry
By 2050, shipping could be responsible for around 17% of global greenhouse gas emissions. A scenario that the International Maritime Organization (IMO) is determined to avoid. Its objective is to reduce GHG emissions from shipping by at least 50%. This decision should prompt companies to reinvent themselves by shaking up their habits and taking strong measures to limit their ecological footprint. With this in mind, NEOLINE, through the experts at Axima marine, has taken concrete steps to meet this challenge.
Neoline's future vessel, the Neoliner, is a ro-ro sailing cargo ship with main propulsion from diesel engines. The transatlantic line operated by NEOLINE will focus on a niche market, offering new capacities in terms of freight type (rolling and non-standard freights) and destination. By mid-2025, the first line will link St-Nazaire to the US East Coast, with two crossings at St-Pierre et Miquelon. The aim is to serve this route with two ships, enabling two departures per month.
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“ For the entire NEOLINE team, its founders, its technical partners including Axima Marine, its customers and its financial backers, the announcement that the first Neoliner will go into construction in January is the culmination of a long period of work carried out with passion and determination. Indeed, this is the first achievement of an ambitious project launched in 2011, which proposes an efficient, industrial-scale, wind-powered maritime transport solution to contribute to the fight against climate change and to the sector's rapid energy transition: our customers will reduce the impact of their logistics chain by at least 80% on their transatlantic routes. ”
Between 80% and 90% less fuel consumption
Axima Marine, a subsidiary of Equans France, has signed a three-year contract with the Turkish shipyard RMK Marine to take part in the birth of this first transatlantic vele cargo ship. Heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment, as well as refrigeration systems, are the second largest source of energy consumption at sea after propulsion on board ships.
Leader in HVAC and refrigeration in the maritime field for 140 years, Axima Marine designs, supplies and maintains solutions in favor of the energy transition. This project consolidates Axima Marine's position as a leader in the HVAC and refrigeration sectors on board ships.
“ Combining performance, innovation and energy efficiency is the daily challenge taken up by the Axima Marine teams, who support marine industry players in the construction and maintenance of high-performance, low-carbon vessels. Working on the Neoliner and RMK Marine is a real source of satisfaction for us, as this is an innovative, high-performance and competitive mode of transport, in line with our values. We applaud the choice of NEOLINE for velelic propulsion, which enables us to drastically reduce fossil fuel consumption and the resulting emissions. ”