His Excellency Jaber Al Suwaidi, General Director of the Crown Prince Court, and Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO of Masdar, toured the PlanetSolar catamaran on the final day of the World Future Energy Summit 2012 (WFES 2012). The visitors were briefed on the technical features and specifications of the catamaran that runs solely on solar panels.

Accompanied by its Captain and Master, Erwann Le Rouzic, PlanetSolar is the world’s largest solar powered boat and was docked in Abu Dhabi for the duration of the summit.

The US$26 million, 101-foot long ship departed Monaco in September 2010 on a voyage around the globe, which has included stops at the Panama Canal, the Philippines, Australia and Hong Kong. The boat, which features 5,380 square feet of solar paneling, reached Abu Dhabi on 14/15th January and departed on 21 January to visit Dubai from the 22-26 January.

PlanetSolar aims to promote the use of renewable energy and, when complete, will become the first ever boat to circumnavigate the world using only solar power.

According to the United Nations, the shipping industry alone is responsible for 4.5 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.

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