LONDON, Aug 21 Reuters A Cargill chartered dry bulk ship has launched on its first voyage since being fitted with special sails, aiming to study how harnessing wind power can cut emissions and energy usage in the shipping sector, the U.S. commodities group said on Monday.

The maritime industry which accounts for nearly 3 of global CO2 emissions and is under pressure from investors and environmental groups to accelerate decarbonisation is exploring a number of different technologies including ammonia and methanol in an effort to move away from dirtier bunker fuel.

Cargill, one of the worlds biggest ship charterers, has been exploring wind assisted propulsion as one cleaner energy option. Wind was a common way of propelling ships before the switch to steam and diesel engines but is now mostly used only for smaller vessels.

It is risk taking. There is no guarantee … that the economics are going to work, Jan Dieleman, president of Cargill39;s ocean transportation division, told Reuters.

But it is up to us to show the industry what is possible and hopefully get some more people confident around this technology.

The fiveyear old Pyxis Ocean has been retrofitted with WindWings, large wing sails measuring up to 37.5 meters in height fitted to the deck of the cargo ship.

Dieleman said Cargill hoped to recoup the costs through fuel savings.

If we are not going to get any real surprises, we are definitely going to scale this. The question is a little bit how and when,…