Weather routing

The longer the voyages are the more route choice flexibility the ship has in order to avoid unwanted weather conditions. Also longer voyages most often include time spent in unsheltered waters where the influence from weather is making weather routing important. Therefore, the biggest potential could be realised in intercontinental trades and for larger ships. The benefit from the measure will come in terms of reduced fuel consumption due to reduced resistance from wave and wind. There might also be a benefit from less fatigue and weather damages on ship equipment.

All ships at all ages can potentially install the system, and therefore it is assumed that the entire fleet can install the measure. However, for existing ships, some ship segments (e.g. large container and roro) have to a certain degree already implemented weather routing and, therefore, have a lower potential for fuel consumption reduction. This is also assumed to be the case for new ships coming into service in this period.

The choice of the most fuel-efficient route must be balanced against the safest route and the quickest route. Any potential requirements from the charterer should also be taken into account.

In order to improve the weather routing a new system will have to be installed on board the ship. This software is often license-based. The technical lifespan of the measure is therefore estimated to be between 1 month and 1 year, depending on the supplier and license agreement.

The system is estimated to cost $20,000 – $30,000 (USD) per ship to install and in addition an annual subscription of $3,000 (USD) per ship is needed to keep the software up to date and get the latest weather information.

The total saving potential has been assessed to between 0.5 – 5% dependent on ship size and type and the typical trade for the different ship segments.