Led by Kongsberg Maritime and supported by 14 European partners, the Horizon Europe-funded project brings together industry, clusters and research institutions to support the transition to low- and zero-emission shipping. AWESOME tackles technical, operational and regulatory barriers that still limit wider deployment of wind propulsion.
Through strong collaboration with industry, research and academic partners, awesome aims to make wind propulsion a viable and scalable solution for reducing emissions in shipping through real-world validation and stronger integration with onboard systems. By combining transparent performance verification with holistic control and automation, the project will enable fleets to meet emerging frameworks such as FuelEU Maritime and future IMO standards. This allows shipowners to postpone the adoption of costly low carbon fuels.
Shipping must decarbonise quickly to meet climate targets, yet adoption of WAPS has been slowed by uncertainty over performance, cost and operational impact. AWESOME will tackle these challenges by delivering validated performance data and decision-support tools that strengthen confidence in investment decisions.
A central element of the project is the use of two full-scale demonstrators—one retrofit and one newbuild. The retrofit case, one of Odfjell’s chemical tankers, will show how WAPS can be integrated into existing vessels, while the newbuild, Neoliner Origin (Neoline), will demonstrate how the technology can be optimised from the design stage.
Together, these vessels will allow the consortium to validate performance models, test advanced methods for measuring thrust and energy savings, and assess long-term operational behaviour under real operating conditions. These demonstrators will provide robust real-world data across vessel types and operating conditions, helping the industry reduce risk and accelerate deployment at scale.
“Wind-assisted propulsion is already delivering real results for Odfjell. Through projects like AWESOME, we are building on our long-term efforts to reduce emissions by turning operational experience into knowledge that can be scaled across the industry. We see considerable potential in wind, and initiatives like this are key to unlocking it by improving insight and reducing uncertainty,” says Jan Opedal, Manager Project at Odfjell.
“Europe is currently a global leader in wind assisted propulsion technologies. The AWESOME project is another important step to increase European leadership, by pooling public and private resources, ensuring large scale deployment of wind assisted propulsion. This will not only result in lowering emissions, but in being able to sail as economically as viable with sustainable alternative fuels as well”, says Jaap Gebraad, Secretary General, Waterborne Technology Platform.
AWESOME will also support wider industry uptake by improving how WAPS performance is measured, documented and recognised. In parallel, the project will generate knowledge relevant to crews, operators and future regulatory development.