HNLMS Groningen, a Holland class patrol ship, received the Hull Vane retrofit earlier this year. Developed by Wageningen-based Hull Vane BV, the Hull Vane® is a patented stern-mounted underwater appendage that serves to suppress the stern wave and improve hydrodynamic performance to reduce fuel consumption (and hence CO2 emissions); increase maximum speed; reduce wake; and improve seakeeping by dampening pitch, heave and roll effects.
Hull Vane installations have previously been fitted to yachts and commercial vessels. The decision to retrofit Groningen grew out of a 2015 study that predicted a reduction of approximately 13% in annual fuel costs through the retrofit of the ‘wing’ design at the stern. Following interest from the Netherlands Ministry of Defence, further work was performed to characterise performance gains, optimise performance, and ensure the structural integrity of an integration.
Based on these studies, the company was in late 2020 contracted for the fabrication of the Hull Vane® structure for installation on a Holland class vessel. The project has been funded and led by MIND (Military Innovation by Doing) and COMMIT.
Since receiving its ‘underwater spoiler’, Groningen has subsequently undertaken operations in the North Sea and the Caribbean, and transited the Atlantic. MARIN measurements performed during sea trials indicated a 16% fuel reduction at 17.5 kt, and 10% across the full usage profile, attributed to Hull Vane®. Based on a typical operating profile, this equates to a saving of 300,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year according to COMMIT.
Speaking to Naval News at the NEDS exhibition in Rotterdam on 30 November, Hull Vane BV’s CEO Niels Moerke noted that the formal evaluation period for Groningen would last 12 months.
“But what we have heard so far is absolutely in line with our expectations, and is serving to validate our modelling. Feedback from the crew has also been very positive – as well as reduced fuel burn, the wake has changed, and ship motions are reduced.”
Niels Moerke, CEO of Hull Vane BV
Reduced wake turbulence simplifies launch and recovery of the Fast Raiding Interception and Special Forces Craft from the vessel’s stern slipway, while less deck motion in higher sea states expands the operating envelope for embarked rotary-wing aviation. Wake reduction also means lower visual and acoustic signatures.
Hull Vane BV is now looking to address the wider naval ship market. “For the RNLN, the three other Holland-class vessels are potential candidates for the Hull Vane, as well as support ships and future vessels,” Moerke said. “We are also looking to engage with European shipbuilders given that it is most advantageous to install a Hull Vane on new-build vessels.”
