The MS Tûranor PlanetSolar, a 31-metre long catamaran covered with 500 square metres of photovoltaic solar panels, departed Monaco on September 2010 to start a world tour to promote solar energy and to showcase a Swiss-driven product of renewable energy meant to inspire new business opportunities amongst boat builders and component manufacturers along the route. Prior to arriving in Hong Kong, the ship crossed the Atlantic and the Pacific, and visited more than seven countries, including the United States of America, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Australia and the Philippines, at ports along the equator where the maximum amount of sunlight is available. Designed in New Zealand and built in Germany, the MS Tûranor PlanetSolar was imagined and brought forward by Swiss adventurer and boat skipper Raphaël Domjan who dreamed to be the first to sail the seven seas using only solar energy. The boat flies the Swiss flag and embodies Switzerland’s ambitions to be an innovative leader in environmentally-sustainable development and education efforts. “It is initiatives like PlanetSolar that ensure the next generation will grow up to be environmentally-conscious and understand the importance of renewable energy and earth friendly technology,” said Raphaël Domjan. “Swiss ingenuity brought this project to life to show that, just like in Switzerland, economy and ecology can co-exist to inspire new business opportunities based on renewable forms of energy.” Source Credit: Presence …