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Zurich-headquartered power and automation technology group, ABB, has been awarded the Innovation of the Year Award for the recently introduced Azipod D [pictured] electric propulsion product at the Electric & Hybrid Marine World Expo in Amsterdam.

The Innovation of the Year Award identifies pioneering technologies that push the boundaries and contribute to making electric and hybrid propulsion possible and viable. The winner was selected by an international jury consisting of 38 maritime journalists, industry experts and academics.

ABB introduced the Azipod D in March 2015. ABB's gearless Azipod propulsion system is already the preferred choice of cruise vessels, icebreakers, ice-going cargo vessels and offshore accommodation ships.

Azipod D has been designed to provide increased design flexibility in order to accommodate a wide range of hull shapes and propeller sizes, as well as simplicity of installation of the propulsion units. The Azipod D requires up to 25 percent less installed power, which is partly due to the new hybrid cooling that increses the performance of the electric motor by up to 45 percent. ABB's Azipod D propulsion power ranges from 1.6 megawatts to 7 megawatts (MW) per unit.

In a statement, Heikki Soljama, Managing Director for ABB's marine and ports business, said: "We are delighted that our contribution to the further expansion of electric propulsion is recognized as Innovation of the Year. The flexibility that electric propulsion provides is key to future success in shipping, and therefore it is easy to understand why electric propulsion is growing many times faster than the world's fleet.

"Azipod D allows a wider range of vessel types to benefit from the proven reliability and flexibility that have made Azipod the leading propulsion system across numerous ship types, such as cruise vessels and icebreakers."

ABB said: "With the Azipod D, shipping segments such as offshore drilling, construction and support vessels and ferries will have even more choices to benefit from the higher flexibility, reliability and energy efficiency provided by Azipod propulsion technology."

ABB was also named Propulsion Manufacturer of the Year for the second consecutive year.