There’s a lot happening at PONANT; the small but mighty luxury cruise company is not only celebrating their 35th anniversary, but they have committed to one of the most innovative sustainability projects happening in the cruise industry; the Swap2Zero Project.
Plans have been unveiled and the timeline may seem a bit far away because there’s a lot of engineering that still needs to be done; but PONANT’s first zero carbon emission vessel will set sail in by 2030.
“It sounds really far away, but that's because we have to invent the technology to make this possible,” Ellen McIlvaine, Vice President of Sales for North America, told TravelPulse Canada during their visit last week.
“It’s a very wholistic approach to travelling sustainably. Everything from how do we turn bio waste into fuel? If there’s carbon emitted, how can we capture it, liquefy it and turn it into a fuel? Even furniture - if it breaks, can it be repaired by ship carpenters? Every single thing needs to be really looked at very carefully.”
With around 100 staterooms and an overall length of 181 meters, PONANT’s future sailing ship hopes to make waves in the industry. The vessel is part of the Swap2Zero Project (Sustainable, Wind-Assisted Propulsion, Zero-Emission Ready) which aims to be a catalyst for new energy solutions for the company and also on a broader scope within the industry.
“This is much more than a new ship,” says Hervé Gastinel, CEO of PONANT. “We want to offer a new mode of navigation and actively contribute to decarbonization of the maritime sector. Our inhouse R&D team has brought together the best specialists in shipbuilding and renewable energy to imagine and develop an energy model that aims at zero emissions. With Swap2Zero, we are building a French technological showcase to convince other stakeholders to commit to carbon neutral navigation.”
“I feel like we’re giving people a college course to understand what we’re doing,” says McIlvaine. “It’s truly innovative.”
A rendering of the new vessel in Swap2Zero Project
The vessel will feature:
- A sail power system providing an average of half of propulsion energy;
- New generation panels with solar devices integrated into the sails;
- Liquid hydrogen-aided propulsion with water and heat being recycled;
- A high temperature fuel cell to meet the ship’s hotel load requirements, with the heat emitted being recovered and used to produce hot water;
- On board carbon capture technology;
- A bespoke energy management system to control and distribute power without any generators being in service and on board carbon capture technology.
McIlvaine says PONANT has seen steady growth in the Canadian market over the past few years, with shorter booking windows and, the Mediterranean and Caribbean being top destinations. To meet demand, the company hired a BDM for Eastern Canada last year, Erica Barber and brought on a bilingual reservations and customer service agent, also based in Canada.
“We want to really be here for our Canadian advisors, especially as we move forward.
We’ve always been very innovative, and this is a big venture to take on, but somebody has to do it. Once we have it completed, the technology will allow everyone to do better. PONANT is certainly different, but not alone in our efforts to prioritize sustainability.
We're putting in a lot of effort into the innovation and technology to reach our ambitious goals.”
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