Kite-pulled ship on its way to Venezuela

Kite-pulled ship on its way to Venezuela

January 18 2008 at 06:47PM

Bremerhaven - A kite-drawn German freighter was bound for Venezuela Friday on its maiden voyage, testing out wind- assistance for its diesel engines.

An unexcitable lot, the officers of the new MS Beluga SkySails neither cheered nor embraced when the 160-square-metre flying sail was unfurled late Thursday.

The steersman's only reaction at the historic moment, 30 kilometres out of Bremerhaven, was to stoically grunt, "Huh. It works." Captain Lutz Heldt just nodded approval.

The hi-tech kite is designed to help slash the spiralling cost of fuel in cargo shipping.

The paraglider-type sail is tethered to the bow of the 132-metre- long vessel, owned by Bremen-based Beluga Shipping and operating trans-Atlantic routes.

More:
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=143&art_id=nw20080118162423314C476412

http://johnstodderinexile.files.wordpress.com.nyud.net:8090/2006/07/beluga_skysails_seite.jpg

MS Beluga SkySails

until we go back to using sailing ships...?

Thanks for the post.

There's generally a south wind coming up 5 mile long Wolf Bay, AL.
The kite idea just came to me one day.
I motored down to the south end of the bay (Intracoastal Waterway) and put a largish kite aloft. Tied it off to the front rail of the boat and shut the engine off.
Using the outboard as a rudder I had some control over heading.
Had a nice, leisurely cruise back up the bay (2-3 kts.) for FREE!
Cool.

Ships to become green
21 Jan 2008, 1358 hrs IST,ANI

LONDON: A German engineer has paved way for 'green' ships by inventing a vessel that will be powered by a giant, parachute-shaped kite, instead of diesel.

The cargo ship is set to leave Germany on a voyage that indicates a new 'green' age of commercial sailing on the high seas.

With the help of MS Beluga, a 462ft cargo vessel, its owners will be able to prove that modern steel ships can use wind power and cut the need for diesel engines.

During the voyage from Bremen to Venezuela, the crew will set up a SkySail, a 160 square metre kite which will fly more than 600ft above the vessel, where winds are stronger and more consistent than at sea level.

Stephan Wrage, the inventor of the ship, has claimed that the kite will significantly reduce carbon emissions, cutting diesel consumption by up to 20 per cent and saving 800 pounds a day in fuel costs.

More:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Developmental_Issues/Ships_to_become_green/articleshow/2717684.cms

Slower boats to China as ship owners save fuel
Sun Jan 20, 2008 11:29pm GMT

~~~~ click for photo ~~~~

A commercial vessel uses a high-tech kite designed to cut fuel consumption and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in this undated handout photo. Oil at more than $90 a barrel is concentrating minds in the shipping industry. Higher fuel costs and mounting pressure to curb emissions are leading modern merchant fleets to rediscover the ancient power of the sail.


By Erik Kirschbaum

BERLIN (Reuters) - Oil at more than $90 a barrel is concentrating minds in the shipping industry. Higher fuel costs and mounting pressure to curb emissions are leading modern merchant fleets to rediscover the ancient power of the sail.

The world's first commercial ship powered partly by a giant kite sets off on a maiden voyage from Bremen to Venezuela on Tuesday, in an experiment which inventor Stephan Wrage hopes can wipe 20 percent, or $1,600, from the ship's daily fuel bill.

"We aim to prove it pays to protect the environment," Wrage told Reuters. "Showing that ecology and economics are not contradictions motivates us all."

The 10,000-tonne 'MS Beluga SkySails' -- which will use a computer-guided kite to harness powerful ocean winds far above the surface and support the engine -- combines modern technology with know-how that has been in use for millennia.

More:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUKL1831298320080120