Neoliner Origin, the world’s largest cargo ship to be powered primarily by sails, has been launched at RMK Marine shipyard in Tuzla, Turkey.

The French shipping company Neoline began construction of the 136-metre-long and 24.2-metre-wide ship in November 2023.

Its ambition was to build a vessel as efficient as possible when delivering freight across the oceans. With its two 90-metre masts and 3,000 square metres of sails, Neoline says that the Neoliner Origin will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 80% compared with conventional ships of an equivalent size.

Offering a low-carbon option for maritime freight, 60-70% of the vessel’s propulsion power comes from wind. Additionally, it also uses hybrid diesel-electric power and generates energy from its own wake to reduce emissions.

The Neoliner Origin is a roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessel, which means it is designed to transport rolling equipment and oversized freight. It has conventional capacity for 5,300 tonnes of cargo or 265 containers...