Kite ship: preliminary investigation on power generation

Abstract

This research project is carried out with the purpose of investigating the application of kite ship system operating within Malaysian water and weather environment. This study began with the analyzing of the weather characteristic such as wind speed, wind direction and frequency in selected South China Sea area based on the data given by the Malaysian Meteorological Department. It then followed with the study on technical knowhow in determining the additional propulsive force generated to the ship by the flying kite. The additional propulsive power was then translated into the amount of fuel saving that a ship can achieved. This has in turns enabled the economic analysis to be carried out. To investigate the techno economic feasibility of the kite ship system, a case study was made to a typical medium size vessel operating within the selected area. The result of this study indicated that, the average speed and frequency of wind in South China Sea is capable for launching and modestly operating the kite ship system. The most suitable local shipping route to apply kite ship system is when the prevailing wind direction is coming from Northeast from January until March and winds direction coming from Southwest from July to September. In this study, the shipping route selected for an analysis is Sepangar – Singapore - Sepangar. Based on the techno economic analysis, with the investment cost of kite systems at around Euro 495,000.00 and the fuel saving due to wind force at 16 %, the break even of total investment can be achieved within four to six years depending on fuel price.