Building work on the first of a fleet of Cutty Sark-sized cargo trimarans will start next year after the French company behind the idea raised €40million.
The ships, at 67 metres long, are bigger than famous tea clipper the Cutty Sark, on display at Greenwich in London, which has a 64-metre long hull.
If all goes well the trimarans should start sailing in the second half of 2026. The ports of La Rochelle in Charente-Maritime and Honfleur in Calvados are likely to be used.
“The big difference between the tea clippers and our ships is the modern weather mapping technology, which means we will always be able to find the wind,” said Michael Fernandez-Ferri, managing director of Sail for Goods, the company behind the scheme.
“We are confident that our ships will average 13 to 14 knots (24-26km/h) which means 15 days to cross the Atlantic is well within reach.”
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Reduction in carbon emissions
Clippers averaged four to five knots, although the Cutty Sark once had a sustained run over 300 nautical miles at an average of 17 knots.
Mr Fernandez-Ferri and two other co-founders were working for another mobility start-up, specialised in car-fleet data, when they decided to look into the possibility of a sailing cargo ship to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
“We were backed by the insurance firm Macif, which was also the main sponsor for many years of [yacht racer] François Gabart, so we knew him. When we put the idea to him he was very keen.”
Mr Gabart won the 2012-13 Vendée Globe in 78 days 2 hours 16 minutes, setting a new race record. In 2017 he also set the speed record for sailing around the globe, in 42 days 16 hours and 40 minutes.
He runs a consulting company, called MerConcept, in Finistère. It specialises in racing and sail transport and employs 60 people.
“The DNA of off-shore racing is at the heart of being able to make this cargo ship work,” said Mr Gabart.
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Vela's carbon fibre masts
Using the trading name Vela, the ships will have aluminium hulls and be built in a Philippines shipyard by an Australian company.
The two masts will be made out of carbon fibre and 30% of the value of the ship, including the sails, will come from French companies.
Most of the deck space will be covered with photovoltaic panels for electrical systems, which will be supplemented by two hydro-generators.
An electric-powered hydraulic motor will be used to hoist and trim the sails, and to manoeuvre in port, with electricity coming either from the panels, hydro-generator or from a diesel engine.
The motor will also drive a propeller if necessary, and thrusters to manoeuvre in port.
Almost all the sail changing and navigation will be done from a cockpit, with crew needed on deck only to reef (shorten) the sails if strong winds are anticipated.
Trans-Atlantic journeys
Each voyage could carry 600 pallets of goods, the equivalent of 51 standard containers, weighing a maximum of 400 tonnes. Holds will be temperature and humidity controlled so that items such as luxury goods can be transported.
A planned fleet of five ships will enable regular weekly departures from France, with a crew of eight for each.
Crews will each do a return trip with just one day in port in the US, then have a break.
As well as the trans-Atlantic journeys, the company may develop a route from the south of France to the north, along the Atlantic, and possibly another line from Portugal to Denmark and Sweden.
Prices per kilogram transported are likely to be significantly more expensive than conventional containers, but much cheaper than air freight. Some of the extra cost might be off-set by carbon credits.
The use of pallets should mean that the time to clear goods from the port is quicker than container systems.
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Hybrid cargo ships
Only French-registered sailors will be used, and the ships will fly the French flag.
France’s Crédit Mutuel bank and the state BPIFrance bank, along with the US fund 11th Hour Racing, were the main investors in the €40million fundraising round.
The Vela sailing ships will join a growing number of wind-powered and wind/diesel hybrid cargo ships from France.
Brittany-based Grain de Sail has been running regular trans-Atlantic routes for five years, bringing chocolate and coffee to France and cargos of luxury goods and wine to the United States.
The chocolate and coffee beans are transformed and sold in the company’s factory.
Another firm, called Towt, has two cargo ships which also have cabins for 12 passengers. One ship runs a trans-Atlantic route and the other does longer voyages to Vietnam and Brazil.
Last year also saw the first voyage of the cargo ship Canopée, with 30 metre-high sails to reduce fuel consumption by 30%.
It is used to transport the largest part of the Ariane 6 space rocket from France to the launch site in Kourou in French Guiana and is expected to make crossings between nine and 12 times a year.
And investment by the shipping company CMA CGM means that the large Neoline roll-on, roll-off sailing cargo ship, designed to take cars and other goods from France to the French Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon islands off Canada, Baltimore in the US and Halifax in Canada, is likely to launch in 2025.
The Neoline will be twice as long as the Vela trimaran.
