The MV “Beluga SkySails”, the world's first cargo vessel with the innovative SkySails towing kite system, is being used for a commercial transport for the first time. This Saturday, the Multi-Purpose Heavy-Lift Carrier of the Bremen-based company Beluga Shipping will set off from Bremen and carry the first parts of a complete particle board factory to Venezuela by order of DHL Global Forwarding, the ocean and air freight carrier of the Deutsche Post World Net Group. DHL will transport this factory to South America for its client Dieffenbacher, a company based in Eppingen, Baden-Württemberg, in a total of eight partial shipments. It is to be used for a government-sponsored housing project.
After the arrival of the cargo vessel in Bremen's Neustädter Harbor on Friday, DHL Global Forwarding immediately began loading the freighter with parts of the factory. Claus Krüger, director at DHL Global Forwarding and responsible for the Project Group Germany: "In its first partial shipment, the vessel is transporting about 10,000 freight tons from Bremen to Guanta, Venezuela. The route across the Atlantic will take a good two weeks."
The crew of Beluga captain Lutz Heldt has been trained intensively for the voyage and in handling the auxiliary wind propulsion system by SkySails. Two engineers of the Hamburg-based company will be on board throughout the maiden voyage of the MV “Beluga SkySails”, further train the crew on the system, document all practical experiences with the system during regular shipping operations, as well as collect data throughout the journey. Heldt is confident: "Depending on the wind conditions, we're expecting a fuel saving of between ten and 20 percent - assuming wind conditions are favorable."
DHL considers the MV “Beluga SkySails” a forward-looking example “of how to implement environmentally sound, low-emission ocean freight transports. Shipping operations thus not only become safer and more profitable, but also the promising environmental aspects of this new system were a major factor in our decision for this charter."
With the first commercial voyage of the cargo vessel with environmentally friendly wind propulsion, DHL is reinforcing its pioneering role in the use of innovative, sustainable technologies. Environmentally sound logistics chains, is not only a central issue for DHL, but is also becoming increasingly important to the company’s customers. “Two thirds of our business customers are already asking for green logistics solutions,” says Claus Krüger.
Bremen, 18 January 2008
