All over the news there are stories of cruise ship vacations gone wrong. Whether a power outage knocks out the electricity or a tragic turn capsizes a ship, more and more unfortunate accidents are taking place on cruise ships. While solar energy cannot make cruise ships safer, they can certainly help make them more economically and environmentally responsible.
Case in point: a solar power system at the Port of Los Angeles. A typical cruise liner uses diesel to power its cabin rooms, restaurants, and activity decks. If a cruise liner was plugged into the 1-megawatt system at Port of Los Angeles between journeys it could absorb enough solar energy to power around 1.2 million kilowatt-hours of free and clean energy.
Royal Caribbean is also paying attention. Recently, the vacation giant launched a cruise liner with UNI-SOLAR laminates. The Allure of the Seas left Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on December 5th, and utilizes UNI-SOLAR’s solar laminates as a flexible and lightweight solar power solution. Solar energy is only part of Royal Caribbean’s commitment to cleaner forms of energy and sustainability.
The cruise industry is currently booming, and many criticize the decadence and over-consumption associated with these high-seas getaways. Still, if cruise companies are dedicated to clean forms of energy, there is no reason why solar energy cannot prevail on cruise ships.
