Second wind...

I know it's been discussed before in these columns - but have any of the European members got an update on SkySails ?
Have added a brief note for those who may wonder what I'm talking about:


Putting a harness on ocean winds, a German shipping company plans to unfurl a giant high-tech kite over a cargo ship next year to boost the vessel's propulsion and to conserve fuel.

The "SkySail", a 160 square-metre kite tethered to a mast, has successfully undergone years of trial runs and Bremen shipowner Beluga Shipping believes it will help its vessels cut fuel use by 15 to 20 per cent.

The "MV Beluga SkySails", now being built and fitted with a paraglider-shaped sail and a "smart" central steerage unit, will make its maiden voyage in early 2007.

"I got the idea on a sail boat a few years ago," said Stephan Wrage, inventor and founder of SkySails GmbH & Co KG.

Backers of "SkySail" call it a "green" project - by cutting fuel use it could help reduce emissions of the greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.

Wrage, 34, said that depending on the vessel and the winds, fuel costs for shippers could be cut by more than $US1,000 a day.

The inventor first tested a prototype of the SkySail on a 3.5 metre boat, then gradually increased the size of the craft before testing it last year on a 55-metre vessel, the "Beaufort".

SkySail's price tag - at between 500,000 and 2.5 million euros ($A846,596 to $A4.23 million) - along with doubts it will deliver promised savings, and its reliance on fickle ocean winds could limit demand at first.

Wrage said ships will initially need to carry an engineer to operate the sail, which is about as big as a medium-sized passenger jet.

"It's going to save money in the long run and it's environmentally friendly," said Verena Frank, project manager at Beluga, a shipping firm with 40 vessels.
"Ours will be the first commercial use in cargo shipping," she said.

Beluga Chief Executive Niels Stolberg said market forces were the main reason he decided to enter a partnership with "SkySails" in 2002. He placed the first order almost a year ago.

He expects SkySails to cut the $US7,500 ($A9,513) daily fuel costs of his cargo ship by up to $US1,500 ($A1,902). And he said the positive impact on the environment was a welcome dividend.

 

skys'l? ain't that the one between the t'gallant and the moonraker?

 

No, it's between the royal and moonraker, the t'gallant is between the topsl and royal.

 

your both being silly now, should,nt that thing be on a pole, see how sensible I am

 

There was a brief article on it in a recent issue of The Naval Architect (the imaginatively entitled magazine of RINA), so I guess it is making progress. I'll try and dig the article out if I haven't thrown it away. Is this similar to Dave Culp's Kiteship stuff (DC contributes to these forums sometimes)?

 

Artimis - my apoligies got the sails upside down!

 

Second wind

Aussie rigged, Walrus...Tell him it was Aussie rigged....

 

Ahh.... a golly-wobbler by any other name, would never set as sweetly...

 

Trev there you go again, if your trying to be PC you can't talk about g**** wobblers!!

 

No, no Walrus - I'm not racist - I love the whites

 

no news on skysails, have a look at www.surfplan.com.au for designing power kites

 

Second wind

Thanks Yipster. All grist to the mill...but a little too energetic for me...

 

Sorry Bergalia, this is the article from the Naval Architect (march 2007) article (typed pretty much word for word, but missing out the boring bits):

"Kites can be used on existing, conventional ships. They require no masts, no ballast, do not take up deck space, and are simple to maintain. SkySails claim fuel costs savings of 10%-35% are realistically achievable, depending on conditions. Pilot systems have recently been applied tio larger yachts, and the first SkySails systems for commercial use on cargo vessels are expected become available in 2007, with large cargo ship systems available the following year. Accurate figures are not available, but various estimates say that the cost of a SkySail kite system for a cargo ship should be recovered in 3 to 5 years. 2006 saw the SkySails cargo ship application reach fruition, following the purchase by German company Beluga of a kite system for a newly built 140m ship Berluga SkySails, with demo cruises to begin during 2007. Initial training and familiarisation runs onboard the Berluga ship have shown the promise of the system. The concept is also thought to have considerable potential in the fishing trawler market place."
KiteShip seems to be a US equivalent - pretty similar, I think. They intend to fit an 80,000sqft kite to an existing cruise vessel to demonstrate the concept.

The article has all the hallmarks of being cobbled together from press releases rather than independent journalism, so take it all with a pinch of salt. I'm not sure it tells of anything new.

 

Second wind

Can't imagine this is a valid point. In my days trawlermen were pretty furtive creatures...Secrecy was one of the 'essentials' in taking the best catch and earning the best money. If skippers hit a 'golden trough' they keep it to themselves - denying they were where the 'opposition' thought they were..."Nah, your radar must be on the blink...We're actally at....' followed by a string of co-ordinates - often giving the trawler's position in the middle of the Sahara Desert." But with a damn great kite flying overhead...subterfuge will count for nothing...