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The volatile world economy and the adoption of stricter emission policies from the European

The combination of a prime mover and an energy storage device for reduction of fuel consumption has successfully been used in the automotive industry. In the shipping industry, the potential use of a hybrid battery-diesel-electric propulsion system is investigated. The scope of this study is to suggest that in existing newly built vessels and in modern designs, such a combination can be achieved without significantly affecting the principal dimensions of the ship and the cargo capacity. This work considers structural arrangements of a bulk carrier fleet of all vessel types. Complete calculation of free, void and machinery spaces is performed. The energy requirements of each vessel size and the derived energy storage system are used to inform the installation and construction scenarios. Meanwhile, trim constraints are investigated and discussed. Installation and retrofitting issues affecting the housing compartments of the proposed system are investigated for the current ship designs. Results indicate that such an installation will fit in modern bulk carriers and that proper allocation of the weight may be used to improve the trim. Cargo capacity is affected by less than 1.0% and is dependent on the battery weight, the type of diesel generators and electric motor technology deployed.