Call it a worthy sacrifice of deck space, two Japanese companies Nippon Oil and Nippon Yusen recently finished their project of fitting a cargo ship with 328 solar panels. The project estimated at $1.68m, is the first of its kind, and uses the solar panels to power 7% of it’s electrical needs and a mere 0.3% of engine power. It’s a slow first step, but over-time and with higher efficient panels, we would expect to see better results in the future.

From engadget.com

"The $1.68m project involved the installation of 328 solar panels, which produce 40 kilowatts of power -- a measly 0.3 percent of the engine power required to move the 656-foot, 60,000-ton ship when fully loaded with 6,400 cars, but enough for seven percent of the juice required for lighting and other systems."

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