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(U-Ming, Taipei City, Taiwan) and composite wind propulsion technology provider (Anemoi, London, U.K.) announce the successful completion of the rotor sail installation on U-Ming’s Grand Pioneer, a 325,000 DWT very large ore carrier (VLOC) vessel. U-Ming is reported to be the first Taiwanese shipowner to adopt rotor sails.

The four 35-meter-tall, 5-meter-diameter folding (tilting) composites-intensive rotor sails supplied by Anemoi were delivered fully assembled and dynamically balanced from Anemoi’s production base on the Yangtze River and transported by barge to Cosco Zhoushan shipyard. In a streamlined plug-and-play process distinctive to Anemoi, the sails were lifted directly onto the deck and secured in place. This method significantly reduced the shipyard’s scope of work and kept installation time short. For this installation, it took only 1.5 days to lift and fix the rotor sails in position onboard, with a further 5 days for commissioning and testing all four rotor sails and folding systems once the shipyard had completed their work during the vessel’s scheduled dry-dock in September 2025.

Anemoi’s specialist team were present throughout the process, overseeing the installation, and will sail on the vessel’s maiden voyage from Zhoushan to Singapore, with the rotor sails deployed and operational. This is to ensure crew training and operational handover will be completed smoothly, equipping U-Ming’s seafarers with the skills and confidence to operate the technology.

The Grand Pioneer’s installation marks an important step in U-Ming’s decarbonization journey.

Following completion of the installation, Grand Pioneer will resume deep-sea service between Brazil and China under a long-term charter with Brazilian mining company Vale. The vessel is projected to achieve annual fuel and emissions reductions of approximately 10-12% on average.