SunPower Cells to Power Catamaran for Trip Around the World

www.greentechmedia.com
September 2, 2009

A showcase project called PlanetSolar plans to build a solar energyed catamaran and sail it around the world, and it has chosen SunPower's cells to do the job. San Jose, Calif.-based SunPower said Wednesday that it plans to provide 38,000 solar cells with 124 kWs of generation capacity. The cells, which can convert 22% of the sunlight that hits them into electricity, will be embedded into the skin of the catamaran.

The selection of SunPower is not so surprising. The boat will have to rely on solar energy only. That calls for highly efficient solar cells, and SunPower is known for producing the most efficient silicon cells on the market today. The boat is supposed to come with a lithium-ion battery pack as well.

PlanetSolar wants the catamaran to be the first boat powered exclusively by solar energy to circumnavigate the world along the equator at a speed of 8 knots. The project is meant to demonstrate how the shipping industry could reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. We did a story about the project back in March. The boat will carry two crew members and make many stops including Hamburg, London, Paris, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, Shanghai and Abu Dhabi.

The Knierim Yacht Club in Kiel, Germany, is building the boat. Construction is set for completion in early 2010, and the boat will cruse around Europe next summer. Then, the 140-day worldwide voyage is set to take place in 2011, according to the project website.

PlanetSolar doesn't appear to have disclosed the cost of this project, which is relying on a host of sponsors. SunPower declined to disclose the financial terms of this deal. A project like this would offer tremendous publicity value, so the solar company could well be providing the cells at a good discount.

SunPower has participated in similar showcase projects before. In an interview last year, the company's co-founder Dick Swanson fondly recalled the company's involvement in Honda's efforts to build a solar energyed racecar back in the 1990s. The car, which could go 90 miles per hour, went on to win a race in Australia.