Windassist

Sailcargo, sailtraining and wind-assisted ship propulsion

Windassist

Sailcargo, sailtraining and wind-assisted ship propulsion

Sail cargo SeaSustainability

France European leader in Wind Propulsion

France has just reached an important milestone: the National Assembly unanimously passed at first reading the bill aimed at accelerating the development of sail propulsion.

The International Windship Association newsletter is enthusiastic about the various French initiatives in the field of wind propulsion and sail cargo, which contributed greatly to the bill.

The text of the bill, the result of a year-long effort, first of all defines what a sailing vessel is and stabilises existing support measures that are regularly called into question, leading to legal uncertainty that is detrimental to the development of the sailing sector: exemption from the employer’s contribution on the ENIM part, green extra depreciation, access to CEEs and the creation of a decarbonisation fund financed by ETS revenues. A strong signal: wind becomes a pillar of the maritime sector’s ecological transition.

The progress of this revolution is already visible:

  • Orient Express Silenseas, the largest sailing ship in the world, has set off from Saint-Nazaire for its first season, propelled at 12 knots by the force of the wind alone thanks to the SolidSail system.
  • Neoline is expanding its routes to Canada, while TOWT, which has become NEWTOWT, is resuming operations with a focus on Brazil to meet the demand of importers committed to decarbonisation.
  • Airseas and Wisamo go through the validation stages of their technology solutions, and Bag Hatoup wins the call for expressions of interest for the Lorient-Groix route.

On the international stage, France shines: at MEPC 84 in London, VPLP Design and Zéphyr & Borée presented concrete experiences, which contributed to a better (re)understanding of sailing ships by the delegations present – and supported the inclusion of sailing ships in the Net Zero framework being discussed at the IMO.

This collective dynamism is praised at the highest level: Jean Zanuttini, president of Neoline, and Nils Joyeux, president of Zéphyr & Borée and managing director of Windcoop, were appointed knights of the National Order of Merit. An award that crowns their commitment to the ecological transition and once again underlines the value of wind propulsion for ships.

Wind brings hope, and France is putting its players at the service of the collective interest to seize this opportunity and make sail propulsion a sustainable and competitive reality.

Bill on sail propulsion

Bill PPL 1502, which aims to accelerate the development of sail propulsion in shipping, was given a first reading at the plenary session of the National Assembly on Tuesday afternoon, 12 May. It was passed unanimously at the beginning of the evening by the 175 delegates present.

The adopted text contains five articles relating to:

  • the definition of a sailing vessel, with sail as auxiliary or main propulsion,
  • the exemption from employers’ charges for sail propulsion as main propulsion;
  • the green accelerated depreciation when building a sailing vessel or purchasing sailing equipment;
  • access to the CEEs for international sailing transport, in the form of a 3-year pilot project;
  • the establishment of a decarbonisation fund for the maritime sector, including sailing.

The next step is now consideration in the Senate.

Today, France is virtually the only country where new sailing ship owners are emerging – players who design and operate their own sailing ships from scratch – while other countries focus mainly on the retrofit and hybridisation of existing ships, the other essential part of decarbonisation

Source: Newsletter Association Windship.

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