Cargo sailing company TOWT has ordered six newbuildings from French shipbuilder the Piriou group and unveiled some massive ambitions as its gears up to put its first two new ships into service.
These latest six newbuildings are due to go into operation between early 2026 and mid-2027 and will complement the transport offer of the first two vessels, TOWT said.
“With eight vessels, TOWT will contribute, by transporting around 200,000 tonnes of goods, to saving approximately 40,000 tonnes of CO2,” the company said.
TOWT — originally short for TransOceanic Wind Transport — said it intends to “increase its capacities to meet an important demand for decarbonised transoceanic maritime transport”.
“This scaling up propels the shipowner … to the rank of world leader in the sector of sail cargo,” it said.
The company said on Monday that it aims to create the world’s largest sailing cargo ship fleet by 2027.
But it also plans to scale up far beyond this.
TOWT is aiming for €60m ($64m) in turnover by 2028 and foresees the creation of 150 direct jobs and 500 indirect jobs.
But it added: “The objective is clear: to reach 500 vessels by 2050. The climate challenge is worth it.”
TOWT has undertaken a second fundraising effort for this next swathe of newbuildings. But in addition, a citizen fundraising campaign raised €5m from about 3,000 individual savers in just 13 days.
The company said the vessels can reach commercial speed most of the time with all their engines turned off and can also provide faster transit times at affordable and long-term fixed rates with what it claims is a “better environmental hold air quality” than for containers.
TOWT was set up by Guillaume Le-Grand and Diana Mesa in 2011 launching with a mix of existing sailing vessels shipping small-scale parcels of commodities.
The company’s first two newbuildings — the Anemos and Artemis — are due to launch this summer.
“Even before their commissioning in the summer, the first long-term contracts are already signed, and demands are pouring in,” TOWT said.
The company claims its A-class sailing cargo ship newbuildings are “unique” globally and open a path for “a real scale up from the old square-riggers to the real decarbonisation. It said the new ships will enable an over 95% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to fossil-fuelled container ships.
Le-Grand and Mesa said: “After two intense years of work, we are extremely proud to reach this significant milestone in TOWT’s history.
“With the construction of these six additional sail cargo ships, we consolidate our position as a pioneer in sail goods transport by expanding our fleet to eight vessels.
“Remember that the climate emergency can’t wait. Here is a concrete and ambitious response to the growing demand for decarbonised navigation.”
They added: “This expansion strengthens our commitment to a sustainable maritime future. Because, yes, this is just the beginning. We intend to continue our momentum and go even further.”
