On November 6 Canopée, an innovative open top RoRo vessel built by Neptune Marine, received the Ship of the Year Award 2023. The award was granted by the Royal Dutch Society of Marine Engineers (KNVTS) during the Maritime Awards Gala in Rotterdam Ahoy.
Canopée (registered in the Netherlands) is the world’s first hybrid industrial RoRo vessel powered by wind. The combination of diesel propulsion and wind assistance on a RoRo vessel of this size (121 meters long and 22 meters wide) marks a real step forward in the decarbonization strategy for industrial shipping.
With her four wings, the ship aims for a reduction in fuel consumption of on average around 30%, therefore also reducing its CO2 footprint.
Ship of the Year Award
Every year, the KNVTS presents the ‘Ship of the Year Award’ and associated challenge trophy. This prestigious award goes to a ship designed and (largely) completed in the Netherlands that is particularly innovative in technical terms. With this award, we promote technical progress and reward the courage to experiment with new developments.
The award was created in honour of the 100th anniversary of the KNVTS in 1998. Since then, it has been awarded for a variety of vessels: from lifeboats to ferries, naval vessels, an inland tanker, fishing cutter and superyachts. All have one thing in common: they are innovative and progressive. A nomination, and certainly a win, is therefore a wonderful reward for the shipyard, suppliers, all employees involved and, of course, the client.
Maritime Awards Gala
The award ceremony was attended by Minster Harbers (Infrastructure and Watermanagement) and Minister Adriaansens (Economic Affairs and Climate Policy). The event was part of the Maritime Awards Gala at Rotterdam Ahoy that was held at the opening night of Europort 2023.