MV "Beluga SkySails" successfully completes maiden voyage: SkySails Towing Kite System Impresses

Hamburg / Mo-I-Rana, 14 March 2008. "We can once again actually ‘sail' with cargo ships, thus opening a new chapter in the history of commercial shipping," was the verdict from Captain Lutz Heldt following his return from the nearly two-month maiden voyage of the multi-purpose heavy-lift project carrier "Beluga SkySails", which sailed from Germany to Venezuela, the United States and Norway. In even moderate winds, the first flights of an initial 160-square-meter towing kite propulsion system from the Hamburg-based manufacturer SkySails demonstrated how this innovative auxiliary propulsion system was able to substitute for 20% of the engine's power. "With that we impressively validated the original expectations we had for the system," was how SkySails managing director Stephan Wrage (35) assessed the first practical trials aboard the Beluga ship. "In the future, depending on the route and weather conditions, we'll be able to post fuel savings of between 10% and 35% using wind power." The "Beluga SkySails" set sail to Venezuela from Bremen on 22 January and reached the Norwegian port of Mo-I-Rana on 13 March 2008 after travelling a total of 11,952 nautical miles. The testing of the SkySails-System on board the ship newbuilding MV "Beluga SkySails" to be equipped with this innovative technology is being co-funded with some 1.2 million euros as part of the European Union's "LIFE" program.

"The MV Beluga SkySails' maiden voyage is proof in motion of a new kind of hybrid drive on the water that simultaneously reduces both voyage costs and climate-damaging emissions," said Niels Stolberg (47), the president and CEO of the Bremen-based project and heavy-lift cargo shipping company Beluga Shipping. "The initial focus during the first half of what is set to be an approximately 12-months pilot testing phase aboard the "Beluga SkySails" is on calibration work and adjustments to stabilize the towing kite propulsion," reported Stephan Brabeck (46), the technical director of SkySails, adding how "in the second half the flight times will be extended and the performance perfected." On numerous days during the maiden voyage the system was put in action for periods of between a few minutes and up to eight hours. During that time the SkySails-System pulled the ship with up to 5 tons of power at force 5 winds, which when compared to the engine output represents a relief of more than 20%. Projected onto an entire day, this performance by the "Beluga SkySails" represents savings of about 2.5 tons of fuel and more than $1,000 a day. Captain Lutz Heldt (57) is impressed with the first flights of the 160 square-meter SkySails aboard the MV "Beluga SkySails". After the pilot phase the towing kite will be replaced by one that is twice the size, delivering double the amount of energy and which will save two times as much fuel and climate-damaging emissions. Beluga Shipping GmbH in Bremen expects a drop in bunker costs of approximately $2,000 per operating day. The shipping company will be giving part of these savings - 20 percent - directly to the crew as an incentive. Kites with a sail surface of up to 600 square meters will be used on two larger Beluga P-Series carriers that are to be outfitted with SkySails-Systems in the future. Currently under construction, each vessel will have 20,000 tons deadweight and on-board cranes with a lifting capacity of 800 to 1,400 tons.

The WINTECC Project

The goal of the WINTECC (WINd propulsion TEChnology for Cargo vessels) project, which is partly funded by the EU as part of its "LIFE" program, is to measure the savings in energy and CO2 that can be achieved with the help of an innovative propulsion technology. "By cofunding this undertaking we want to set a clear signal for climaterelevant technologies of the future. And we are delighted that the SkySails technology offers such an enormous global potential for savings," commented Paul F. Nemitz, deputy head of the European Commission's Maritime Policy Task Force, about promoting the project. The EU is contributing 1.2 million euros of the project's total budget of 4 million euros as part of its "LIFE" program. Also taking part in the undertaking besides Beluga Fleet Management GmbH & Co. KG in Bremen and the manufacturer SkySails from Hamburg are the companies OceanWaveS in Lüneburg and ALDEBARAN in Hamburg. (Demonstration of an Innovative Wind Propulsion Technology for Cargo Vessels, Project Number: LIFE06 ENV/D/000479)

Beluga Shipping

Bremen-based project and heavy-lift cargo shipping company Beluga Shipping GmbH is the leading specialist for tailored transport solutions. Founded in 1995 by president and CEO Niels Stolberg, the shipping company needed relatively little time to establish itself among the world's top providers of project and heavylift cargo services. Its own ultramodern and young fleet of 54 multipurpose heavy-lift project carriers is fully available to meet the most complex transport challenges on the high seas. The MV "Beluga SkySails", christened on 15 December 2007, is one of these special cargo vessels and utilizes wind power in conjunction with the innovative SkySails towing kite system as an auxiliary and environmentally sound form of propulsion. A superbly qualified staff of some 350 on shore in ten international offices and the headquarters in Bremen, and another 1,300 at sea aboard the specialized fleet, guarantee local availability and the utmost in service and quality.

SkySails GmbH & Co. KG

The SkySails company was established in 2001 and has since grown into a team of more than 50 people. A unique network of external experts and high-performance contractors from the ship-building and aircraft industries, as well as suppliers from the superyacht field, have contributed to the development of the SkySails-System. The SkySails technology is an original design for use in cargo shipping. Following a six-year development period, SkySails is now outfitting the first cargo ships with this fuel-saving and environmentally friendly towing kite propulsion system. In addition to cargo vessels, fish trawlers and superyachts can also be equipped with SkySails. SkySails is financed by the respected ship financing company Jan Luiken Oltmann Gruppe GmbH & Co. KG based in Leer.

OceanWaveS GmbH

The Lüneburg-based company Ocean-WaveS develops, produces and markets the WaMoS II wave monitoring system. Developed by oceanographers and engineers, this surface-current monitoring system detects the currents surrounding a ship in real time. Critical information like this helps support maritime navigation and optimize shipping routes.

ALDEBARAN Marine Research & Broadcast

ALDEBARAN is a Hamburg cross-media agency specialized in the scientific, environmental and maritime fields. ALDEBARAN sees itself as a professional interface between science and the electronic media and has been documenting the SkySails technology since 1992. The maritime competition initiated by ALDEBARAN was recognized as one of the best German cross-media campaigns in 2007.

Additional information is available at www.wintecc.de, www.beluga-group.com, www.skysails.info, www.oceanwaves.de and www.aldebaran.org.