Those fossil-fuel chugging tanker ships transporting goods between the continents may soon be a thing of the past, as development of the world’s first 100 percent renewable-energy powered cargo ship has begun.
Developed by Ireland-based B9 Shipping and scheduled to start undergoing testing at the University of Southampton’s Wolfson Unit for Marine Technology and Industrial Aerodynamics (WUMTIA) this month, once ready for the seas the 3000dwt sailing cargo ship will be the first in the world completely powered by clean, renewable energy.
A hybrid system of sorts, the ship is powered by a combination of a dyna-rig sail propulsion system (first used on the Italian yacht The Maltese Falcon) along with an engine powered by biomethane gas generated from waste by the shipping company’s sister company, B9 Organic Energy. 60 percent of the ship’s power comes from capturing the wind while the remainder is from the gas-powered engine.
“We are designing B9 Ships holistically as super-efficient new builds transferring technology from offshore yacht racing combined with the most advanced commercial naval architecture. We’re combining proven technologies in a novel way to develop ‘ready-to-go’ future-proof and 100 per cent fossil fuel free ships,” said Diane Gilpin, the Director of B9 Shipping.
To help combat drastically rising fuel prices as well as clean up the shipping industry, B9 wants to use the combination of technologies to compete with conventional shipping companies. If it is successful, the company could transform the shipping industry from a carbon-heavy one to a carbon-neutral one.
Watch a video by B9 Shipping titled “Flagships of the Future”:
[via University of Southampton]
Image Credit: B9 Shipping