Tourism for Tomorrow Award 2017
This month the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) presented the finalists for the Tourism for Tomorrow Award 2017. This annual award is among the highest accolades in the industry and represents the gold standard for sustainable tourism. Soel Yachts is recognised as one of the three finalists for the Innovation Award of WTTC.
Soel Yachts’ sustainable solar electric vessels provide the opportunity for islands and resorts to become completely fossil fuel independent and energy autonomous. Soel Yachts latest energy autonomous vessel, the SoelCat 12, is a unique boat with mobile power station capabilities, which is able of feeding excessive energy back into the existing grid or providing power where no grid is available. The solar electric propulsion system for the SoelCat 12 has been developed and integrally designed by Naval DC. The technology platform can easily be applied to bigger or smaller vessels, thus achieving a high scalability for worldwide applications, for example a 40 passenger solar electric ferry for the Maldives, New York or Venice.
Joep Koster, co-founder of Soel Yachts comments on the nomination for the WTTC Innovation Award: “We feel absolutely honoured to be selected as a finalist for this important award. We are happy to see more and more awareness for the need for sustainable solutions in the marine sector. Vessels operating in coastal waters carry the biggest CO2 footprint for resorts and water-bound municipalities, so Soel Yachts engineered and built a better and fully sustainable alternative. This is a unique advantage for the tourism industry as resorts, nature reserves and tour operators can now offer true ecotourism!”
Winners of the 2017 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards will be announced during the awards ceremony at the 17th WTTC Global Summit, taking place in Bangkok, 26 – 27 April 2017. “There is still no shortage of passion and determination to drive forward sustainability, but working smarter through networks, partnerships and high level thinking mark the future for sustainable tourism.” said Awards Lead Judge, Graham Miller, Professor of Sustainability in Business and Head of School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, The University of Surrey.
“By following our mission, we eliminate fuel- and traditional maintenance-costs, engine noise and exhaust fumes, while introducing 100% green solutions fit to operate in the tough ocean environment. Needless to say that this creates unique PR values and opportunities for the ecotourism market“, comments David Czap, co-founder of Soel Yachts. “We are very proud that our vessels offer these benefits to a worldwide market. Whether the SoelCat 12 is used in Bora Bora, Mauritius, the Maldives or the Bahamas, the benefits and PR values are applicable on a worldwide scale.”
The finalist nomination highlights the fact that the SoelCat 12 is a genuine innovation for the ecotourism market – and with the company’s portfolio spanning from 30kn solar electric speedboats to an entire fleet of solar electric sailing catamarans in the Pacific – Soel Yachts is proud to offer ocean proven technology backed by a substantial track record.
More information can be found on http://www.wttc.org/tourism-for-tomorrow-awards/winners-and-finalists-2017/
For further information on build slots, pricing and testing, please contact Soel Yachts.