Marine

Solarwave 62 zero emission luxury yacht nears completion

Solarwave 62 zero emission luxury yacht nears completion
Solarwave 62' is a lightweight, one hundred percent solar-powered catamaran with zero emissions and consumptions
Solarwave 62' is a lightweight, one hundred percent solar-powered catamaran with zero emissions and consumptions
View 15 Images
Solarwave 62' is a lightweight, one hundred percent solar-powered catamaran with zero emissions and consumptions
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Solarwave 62' is a lightweight, one hundred percent solar-powered catamaran with zero emissions and consumptions
Ned Ship Group has teamed with Solarwave to create a new series of solar yacht designs
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Ned Ship Group has teamed with Solarwave to create a new series of solar yacht designs
Solarwave 62' possesses a luxurious catamaran design that any superyacht enthusiast would love
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Solarwave 62' possesses a luxurious catamaran design that any superyacht enthusiast would love
The yacht features a retractable roof top which can be closed during bad weather
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The yacht features a retractable roof top which can be closed during bad weather
The very first Solarwave 62' model is approaching completion
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The very first Solarwave 62' model is approaching completion
The Solarwave 62' has been achieved by combining designs from Dr. Orhan Celikkol with Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system
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The Solarwave 62' has been achieved by combining designs from Dr. Orhan Celikkol with Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system
Solarwave 62' features a smart energy system that allows the yacht to run on solar-powered energy with an extensive traveling range
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Solarwave 62' features a smart energy system that allows the yacht to run on solar-powered energy with an extensive traveling range
Most of the furniture is a part of the yacht's structure, which saves weight and brings more space
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Most of the furniture is a part of the yacht's structure, which saves weight and brings more space
The yacht's battery bank provides enough energy to power all household appliances on board
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The yacht's battery bank provides enough energy to power all household appliances on board
The yacht's large roof is clad with photovoltaic panels
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The yacht's large roof is clad with photovoltaic panels
The yacht's battery bank provides enough energy for it to cruise on zero emissions
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The yacht's battery bank provides enough energy for it to cruise on zero emissions
Solarwave 62' combines designs from Dr. Orhan Celikkol and Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system
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Solarwave 62' combines designs from Dr. Orhan Celikkol and Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system
During normal conditions the yacht can cruise at speeds between 7 and 13 knots and without the need to utilize additional fuel sources
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During normal conditions the yacht can cruise at speeds between 7 and 13 knots and without the need to utilize additional fuel sources
Solarwave 62' comes complete with full kitchen and lounge, three to five guest cabins, an additional cabin for crew, rear and front sun decks and ample outdoor dining
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Solarwave 62' comes complete with full kitchen and lounge, three to five guest cabins, an additional cabin for crew, rear and front sun decks and ample outdoor dining
Nedship will also offer a hybrid version of the Solarwave 62' that will incorporate diesel engines, allowing the vessel to exceed 20 knots
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Nedship will also offer a hybrid version of the Solarwave 62' that will incorporate diesel engines, allowing the vessel to exceed 20 knots
View gallery - 15 images

Turkish shipyard Nedship has teamed with Solarwave to create a new series of zero emission solar yacht designs. After nutting out the concept and spending four years testing the technology, the very first Solarwave 62' model is now approaching completion.

Solarwave 62' combines a carbon composite hull design from Nedship's Dr. Orhan Celikkol and Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system to create a luxurious 62 foot catamaran that's capable of operating with zero emissions. According to the Nedship the yacht can achieve unlimited range under normal circumstances, at a cruising speed equal to sailing cats.

"We have been working on this concept since 2008," Egon Faiss, Marketing Director at Nedship Group told Gizmag. "We first built a 60 ft. passenger cat that was all solar and realized that with a little more effort it would be totally conceivable to create a luxury yacht, with all of its cruising energy needs. Dr. Orhan Çelikkol, our head designer, started working on the project and after almost a year came out with yacht design that would actually work."

The Solarwave 62' has been achieved by combining designs from Dr. Orhan Celikkol with Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system
The Solarwave 62' has been achieved by combining designs from Dr. Orhan Celikkol with Michael Köhler's Solar Energy system

The yacht's roof is clad with a 15 kW photovoltaic array connected to a series of 100 kWh batteries. The number of batteries can change depending on the yacht owner's needs. The system is designed to provide enough energy for the yacht to cruise on zero emissions, as well as power all household appliances on board (night and day).

"Our yacht is a real solar powered yacht, most solar powered yachts only use the solar panels to support their electrical system ... a little bit," says Faiss. "Ours allows unlimited use without refueling."

With two e-motors (41 kW continuous and 62 kW peak) on board, the yacht can cruise at speeds between 7 and 13 knots without the need to utilize additional fuel sources during sunny conditions and light winds. When the vessel is moored in the marina and there is no need to hook up to a power supply and night time cruising is also possible, with the distance and speed dependent on the the size of the battery bank. There's also a standard emergency generator included – with the Solarwave 62' is 8 kW, but Nedship will also offer upgrades from 12 to 20 kW, or a 30 kW MME turbine generator.

"We can play with the size of the engines according to special client wishes," says Faiss. "We also want to point out, that there is more or less no maintenance needed on the e-motors compared with traditional diesel engines."

Of course, to get full benefit from the Solarwave owners will have to change some habits, including being diligent when it comes to things like switching off appliances when not in use.

Other major features of the Solarwave 62' design include a retractable sky roof, a 6.5m (21.3 ft) tender garage, a modern luxury interior complete with full kitchen and lounge, three to five guest cabins, an additional cabin for crew, rear and front sun decks and ample outdoor dining space.

"Most of the furniture is a part of the structure, which saves weight and brings more space," says Faiss.

Ned Ship Group has teamed with Solarwave to create a new series of solar yacht designs
Ned Ship Group has teamed with Solarwave to create a new series of solar yacht designs

Nedship will also offer a hybrid version of the Solarwave 62', which will incorporate D3 VolvoPenta 220 hp engines, allowing the vessel to exceed 20 knots. The hybrid system can be used in 3 modes: Pure electric, Diesel propulsion or Booster mode (both systems together).

In addition, a special sail assisted version of the Solarwave 62' will be available for owners looking for a more sportive, hands-on yacht. More models are also in the works – the Relax 72' and tri-deck Eclipse 85’, which are based on a similar concept but boast much more space.

The Solarwave 62' is expected to be ready by October/November this year and will cost between 2 and 2.5 million euro (US$2.25 - 2.5million).

Faiss says this puts it more or less in the price range of comparable catamaran yachts of the same size, and expects it to hold its value better than conventional yachts.

We'll watch this pace with interest – stay tuned for photos and more details on this solar super yacht once it is launched. In the meantime you can check out the detailed renderings in the gallery.

Source: Solarwave and Nedship Group

View gallery - 15 images
9 comments
9 comments
AitorLoidi
So, a bit like a sailing catamaran, just not as good.
Stephen N Russell
Venues for Hawaii Mexico Caribbean Australia SE Asia Red Sea Med Sea
For charter & sales alone.
CharlieSeattle
A solar powered blimp makes more sense. It can travel over land and sea.
http://www.solarship.com/
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/solar-powered-blimps-are-the-new-satellites
lat1865
Lots of mistakes and oversights in this write up. No offense, but this writer does not know anything of yachts,small,as 62 footer, nor large, as in mega-yacht. Less than useful information offered and no innovations described in any specific terms. Where is the substance regarding engineering, mechanics, or materials. Just gloss like an advert sheet.
mach37
As Robert A. Heinlein said, "TANSTAAFL; There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." The claim of "Zero emissions" is like the old claim of perpetual motion. Somewhere along the life-cycle of the product there are equivalent energy and emission expenditures - they just don't occur during the brief periods that the assembled vehicle is operating under electrical power.
Carmelmike
The boat my father and I designed and built over a quarter of a century ago was a big cruising sailing cat covered in solar panels and all-electric for motoring...And I just re-did a 25 year old solar project for kicks last summer...
People need to know that stuff has been going on for A LONG TIME...
Steve Jones
@mach37 you're wrong. There's no law to say that the emissions incurred when producing a solar array must be similar to the emissions saved by the energy procured by the array over its lifetime. The sun really does shower the Earth with lots of carbon-free energy, so your "free lunch" argument does not apply. Having said that... I don't see how the manufacturer can be sure that the yacht will hold its value well, given that a) these technologies are progressing apace, so this boat will be old-hat in a few years and b) batteries are expensive and they degrade, so that chunk of the boat's cost will incur significant depreciation. Also, this will be a heavy boat and it apparently only has 120bhp (41kW x 2). So the pure solar version will be very slow.
Nicolas Zart
lat1865, even if, why not continue to move forward? The same thing could be said about steam when gasoline replaced it. And in that case, why didn't we just stop at walking and running? Obviously, you're making a different point, but the move away from ICE to EVs, even if powered by a coal station has been shown, ad nauseam, to reduce tailpipe emissions. Is it perfect? No, but it's a step in the right direction and plenty of more efficient and better energy system are being put in place, and even used.

The point is that new technologies inevitably happen and societies profit from it, both financially and for quality of life. Yeah, I know the last one is a debatable point!
phissith
Hahah but I don't want to die if the blimp starting to fall.