The first one came about a year ago and currently plies the seas of Northern Europe (see the ship the City of St. Petersburg) and now Nissan is introducing another one--the Nichioh Maru. This one will not have the aerodynamic shape of the City of St. Petersburg but will instead be adorned with low drag paint and lots of solar cells which will cut down on the need for diesel generators to power the ship's electrical needs. Lowering the ship's annual usage by 1,200 tons of diesel (which should equate to a savings of some $1.4 million dollars in fuel costs per my calculations) as well as reducing carbon emissions by 4,200 tons (like taking about 810 cars off the road). So this is really just a drop in the bucket in the larger scheme of things...but I suppose its a nice gesture...
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