THREE ORDERS FOR SKYSAILS

By David Hughes
Published: Fri, 4 July 2008

Towing kite manufacturer Skysails says that its propulsion system is more than five times as efficient per square meter of sail than traditional wind propulsion systems, according to the latest measurements made aboard the multipurpose cargo ship “Michael A”. Depending on wind conditions, ships in the future should be able to post fuel savings of between 10% and 35% using this auxiliary propulsion system, the company claims.

“Our own measurements show that we were able to temporarily save far more than half the fuel by deploying SkySails in favorable wind conditions,” reports Gerd Wessels, managing director of Wessels, which owns the Michael A. “Alternatively we were able to increase the ship’s cruising speed from 10 to 11.6 knots with the help of this towing kite propulsion.”

The system has been undergoing pilot testing in European waters since the end of 2007. The test phase has so far resulted in the addition of a sea-state compensator, which allows the towing kite to be launched even under difficult weather conditions. “After installing the sea-state compensator we can now deploy the SkySails system more regularly than was the case at the start of the pilot testing phase and thus also extend the flight times,” says SkySails company founder Stephan Wrage.

Based on the success of the trial so far, Wessels has ordered additional Skysails systems for three 37.00dwt multipurpose newbuildings. The ships were financed through the Oltmann Group in Leer, which provided a major portion of SkySails’ seed money through private investors.