CWS proposes an innovative propulsion system for the shipping sector
At the Wind for Goods event, the trade show dedicated to the sail power sector, the Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Development Agency and Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port are announcing that the CWS Company is set to locate to the Saint Nazaire port facility, in a 10 000 m2 building on the site of the former fruit terminal. CWS is planning to create over 200 direct jobs in Saint Nazaire by 2025, the port authority said.
CWS proposes an innovative propulsion system for the shipping sector. "Our system is the fruit of much reflection with a view to best responding to the challenges of hybridization and through that of the decarbonization of shipping," explains Bruno Toubiana, a co-founder of CWS. Its patented rigid-sail system ensures regular propulsion, with limited drift effects even at high speeds. "We have developed and wind-tunnel-tested an optimal asymmetrical profile that provides more power and delivers better upwind performance. Our patented technology makes it possible to invert this profile and thereby to deploy a fully rigid asymmetrical sail on the port and starboard tack, while at the same time halving the height and practically eliminating windage in a symmetrical position." The sail developed by CWS reduces the vessel’s fuel consumption, in conjunction with the main engine, and can be deployed both on the existing fleet (upgrade) and on new vessels (direct integration).
50 sails produced a year at the Saint Nazaire factory
The Saint Nazaire factory will be used to produce the composite components of the sails, and also for the assembly of the sails. The objective is to begin production in 2024 and to increase the output to a target level of one sail a week in 2026. The first series of sails will be sufficient to fit out an entire fleet of new container ships as of 2025. Eventually, the aim will be both to equip more new vessels, but also to fit out vessels that are already in service.
"We seek to support innovative projects that work to deliver the decarbonization of maritime and port-based activities, and that help make Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port a major player in the ecological and energy transition of Greater Western France. We are delighted to be able to provide CWS with a solution for the production, storage and handling of XXL-sized sails, within the Saint Nazaire port area. This stage marks the establishment of an industry that has a bright future and generates employment in the Port Authority area, in the heart of an attractive region for the development of those activities" states Olivier Trétout, Chair of the Management Board of Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port.