Wattlab introduced its SolarDeck – a modular and scalable system of deck-mounted solar panels that is designed to yield “significant reductions” in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions – for the seagoing shipping industry, with an expected ROI of 3-5 years.
Established in 2017, Wattlabhas spent its first years of operations focusing on the inland shipping sector with its Solar Flatrack, a modular solar energy system consisting of movable and stackable integrated solar panels and inverters. To date, Wattlab’s SolarHatches have been installed on more than 25 inland shipping vessels.
“At all times during the design of SolarDeck, we prioritized the shipowner’s requirements. We know that ‘time is money’. That’s why the SolarDeck can be installed in a minimum amount of time using container twist lock fittings. It also does not impact normal loading and unloading procedures,” said Wattlab’s CEO Bo Salet. “However, we also know – for cargo shipowners especially – that ‘space is money’. In the event of a deck load such as offshore wind blades, the ship’s crew can store the SolarDeck inside the volume of a 20-foot container, thus freeing up the deck for cargo.”
In collaboration with the Dutch Organization for Applied Scientific Research TNO and international shipping company Vertom, Wattlab has spent the previous 18 months developing and testing the new system on board Vertom’s 7,280-dwt general purpose dry cargo vessel Anette, in a project co-financed by the European Union’s Just Transition Fund.
Based on the test results (Vertom’s Anette is 119 metres long and 14 metres wide), Wattlab predicts reductions of 20 MT fuel and 68 MT CO₂ emissions per year for this coaster-type.
“The test results show that SolarDeck performs well in the tougher environment – in terms of salinity and rougher sea states – of coastal shipping. Because salt water can drain freely from the solar panels, there’s no chance of a salt crust forming. As such, SolarDeck generates the expected power output levels,” Salet said. “Furthermore, the system is robust enough to withstand storms as well as the usual day-to-day activities on board a seagoing cargo ship – while staying safe at all times.”
Wattlab’s SolarDeck pilot projecthas been co-financed by the European Union’s Just Transition Fund (JTF). The JTF is a new instrument of the Cohesion Policy 2021-2027, as the first pillar of the Just Transition Mechanism in the context of the European Green Deal aiming at achieving EU climate-neutrality by 2050.
