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https://thedriven.io/2025/07/15/inland-cargo-vessel-to-be-first-in-world-to-use-solar-power-directly-for-propulsion/>
"Dutch maritime solar innovator Wattlab says it has delivered a 35 kW solar
system to provide power to the onboard and propulsion systems of an inland
shipping cargo vessel running on the German canal network.
Wattlab announced last week that it had delivered the 35kW solar system,
consisting of 192 solar panels, to HGK Shipping, Europe’s largest inland
waterway shipping company.
The 192 panel solar system was installed on board the cargo vessel
Blue
Marlin at the De Gerlien van Tiem shipyard. It is not the biggest – it has
previously installed 312 solar panels on the
MS Helios – it will be used to
directly power the ship’s high voltage electric propulsion, rather than focused
only on board systems.
“The
Blue Marlin’s 192 solar panels are not only connected to the low-voltage
onboard systems but also to the high-voltage propulsion network,” said David
Kester, Wattlab co-founder and COO.
“This means that HGK Shipping can proudly state that they are the first inland
shipping company to operate a vessel that uses solar power directly for
propulsion.”
The system will operate in conjunction with on board batteries and allow for
one of the four diesel generators to be switched off even during high-demand
periods.
“Furthermore, in situations where the ship is lightly loaded and travelling
downstream, we anticipate that it may even sail using only solar power for
limited periods – an unprecedented achievement in the inland shipping sector,”
added Kester."
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*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
