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French company to launch world-first cargo sail ship capable of carrying 1,000 tons

Cargo ships burn through large amounts of fuel - STR/AFP via Getty Images
Cargo ships burn through large amounts of fuel - STR/AFP via Getty Images

France is to build its first modern sailing ship to carry cargo around the world in an environmentally friendly way.

The 255-ft vessel will resemble a galleon of the Age of Sail, from the late-16th to the mid-19th centuries, when sailing ships plied the seas as international trade expanded.

There are currently 50,000 merchant ships trading around the world, burning millions of barrels of fuel oil every year.

But the boat's designers believe that growing environmental awareness is turning the wind back in favour of sail.

The ship will be able to carry 1,000 tons of freight, much less than the 25,000 tons of cargo which a standard modern container ship can transport, but with almost zero greenhouse gas emissions. It will travel at a speed of 10 knots.

By comparison, an average 70-foot-long cargo ship can carry approximately 25,000 tons.

The project is the brainchild of a Brittany-based company, Transoceanic Wind Transport (TOWT), a sea freight company that already operates three smaller sailing cargo ships.

It is due to come into service by the end of next year — the first of a planned fleet of up to five large sailing cargo ships. It is expected to cost €10 to 12 million (£9m to £10.8m) to build. Marine architects in Nantes, western France, have designed the ship and TOWT is seeking a European firm to build it.

Its three existing vessels have capacities of 80, 40 and 10 tons. Guillaume Le Grand, the head of the company, said they travel at about 5 knots, half the speed of the planned large ship.

“It takes about 40 days to cross the Atlantic for a cost of several euros (pounds) per kilo,” he said. “The ship we’re going to have built will carry 1,000 tons at more than 10 knots, which means the cost will be reduced to only a few tens of centimes (pence) per kilo.”

Among the company’s existing customers are chocolate, coffee and wine producers. Its ships serve destinations in North, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Africa.

Mr Le Grand said the project is being financed by “green investors”. TOWT posted revenue of €300,000 (£270,000) last year.

The ship will generate its own power for the needs of the crew, he said.