Solar catamaran sails Mediterranean to promote renewables

A solar-powered catamaran recently set sail off the coast of Spain to begin a three-summer-long campaign highlighting the need for renewable energy.

The 46-foot WWF Solar is part of WWF Spain’s “Embárcate” (Get on Board) campaign to promote clean energy and marine ecosystem conservation. The vessel, which set off last week, will sail along the Mediterranean coastline for the next three summers to promote its message.

“The WWF Solar is powered completely by the sun,” said José Luis García Varas, head of the marine programme at WWF Spain. “It does not use sails, and it does not use any fossil fuels. It is a boat that causes no pollution — it does not emit any CO2 whatsoever. The Solar shows that we can easily substitute fossil fuels with renewable energy.”

At every stop it makes, the WWF Solar and its crew plan to disseminate information about endangered Mediterranean  habitats and species and the need for sustainable resource use. During the first few days of the voyage, WWF staff and volunteers also led locals and tourists on trips on the WWF Solar, as well as on diving expeditions and guided hikes.

Among the spots the WWF Solar is set to visit are marine protected areas such as the Cap de Creus Canyon, which is home to the greatest density of submarine canyons in the Mediterranean.

“We can safeguard the Mediterranean region’s biodiversity in a way that benefits both people and the environment,” said García Varas. “Renewable energy is an important part of this as is raising awareness that there are many other sustainable practices, such as operating small-scale fisheries, that make it possible for people and the environment to thrive.”

Photovoltaic panels covering the WWF Solar’s 65-square-metre roof provide enough power to allow the boat to travel at an average speed of 5 knots. When fully charged, the boat’s batteries can run its engines for 90 nautical miles, which is the equivalent of two full nights of sailing (around 18 hours of power).

The WWF Solar set a Guinness World Record in 1997 when a crew of five took it from Basel, Switzerland, to New York City to complete the first clean-energy-powered motorised crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. After that trip, the boat’s developer — the Swiss association Transatlantic 21 — donated the vessel to WWF.