Union Maritime, a leading provider of smart shipping solutions, has celebrated a major breakthrough in maritime sustainability with the maiden European port call of Brands Hatch, the world’s first newbuild tanker equipped with BAR Technologies’ revolutionary WindWings® system.
On her debut voyage, Brands Hatch demonstrated the transformative impact of wind-assisted propulsion, achieving substantial fuel savings and maintaining strong sailing speeds in challenging weather conditions. In favourable conditions, the vessel sourced more than one-third of its propulsion power directly from wind, even while fully laden—proving WindWings®’ ability to deliver both peak performance and consistent efficiency at scale.
Union Maritime complemented this innovation with sail-aware weather routing from Ascenz Marorka. During the voyage, the three WindWings® achieved record performance, displacing 12.8 tonnes of fuel in a single day—an average of 4.3 tonnes per wing per day, equating to 13 tonnes of CO₂ avoided per WindWing® daily. For a six-hour sustained period, peak performance exceeded 18 tonnes per day, underscoring the potential of wind propulsion to deliver substantial and measurable decarbonisation benefits.
The voyage of Brands Hatch marks the start of Union Maritime’s rollout of the world’s largest fleet of wind-assisted vessels, designed to ensure full compliance with international environmental standards through to 2030. In preparation, Union Maritime spearheaded Project AeroPower, a collaborative initiative with Anglo-Eastern, Synergy, Atlantas Ship Management, and BAR Technologies, to guarantee the safe and seamless integration of wind propulsion systems globally.
Laurent Cadji, Managing Director at Union Maritime, commented:
“This milestone voyage with Brands Hatch is a proud moment for Union Maritime and a clear demonstration of our leadership in bringing innovative, sustainable solutions to global shipping. The early performance results highlight the real-world potential of wind-assisted propulsion, and we are pleased to be proving its commercial and environmental value at scale. Our collaboration with BAR Technologies on the deployment of WindWings® is an important part of this journey, and together with our partners we are setting a new standard for efficiency, compliance and responsibility across the industry.”
John Cooper, CEO of BAR Technologies, added:
“The arrival of Brands Hatch in Europe really is a landmark moment, not just for us, but for everyone committed to driving maritime sustainability forward through wind propulsion. This is the first time a vessel built from the ground up with WindWings® has completed a full ocean passage, proving that wind propulsion is ready for commercial-scale use. What makes this even more significant is the collaboration behind it. We’re proud to have worked with Union Maritime and their partners to bring this to life, not only delivering innovation but delivering results. Brands Hatch shows what we’ve believed from the start: that WindWings® are a practical, scalable solution to shipping’s decarbonisation challenge.”
With Brands Hatch, Union Maritime and BAR Technologies have demonstrated that wind propulsion is no longer a vision for the future—it is a proven, commercially viable solution driving shipping’s transition toward a cleaner, more sustainable future.
