Innovative Blue Growth of ISTIA AIGAIOU during 2022

2022 has been a very successful year for our projects. Similar to previous years we have continued expanding the number of producers we serve, the number and volume of products transported by sail and the number of islands we connect, Sifnos Antiparos and Serifos became new anchor stops for the first time with prospects to create further network consolidation.

But the great qualitative leap forward has been the achievement of Zero Carbon Print Sea Transport based solely on the renewable energies of wind and solar. The Greek Green Fund gave us the means to transform our experimental cargo sailboat PELAGO to the FIRST IN THE WORLD solar-electric cargo sailboat that was inaugurated in April, just at the beginning of the Cargo Sailing season.

The experiment proved beyond doubt that autonomous zero carbon sea transport is not a dream but a reality at small scale, awaiting investment to scale up for commercial application. PELAGO covered 3100 NM in Greek and Italian waters using the force of Aeolos on its sails plus more than 350 kWh of electricity generated by the sun and the wind.

We have been able to coordinate the July – August tour of the Aegean of PELAGO with the experimental support personnel, who intervened whenever technical issues arose, aboard the bigger MARINA STAR sailboat.  Then in September – October PELAGO confidently sailed alone to Italy, loaded with the samples of quality products from the islands that were presented during the late September TERRA MADRE conference and fare of Slow Food in Torino. The samples of products we offered and the Greek presence were received enthusiastically.

Thus we left behind the Pandemic years with new prospects of technical climate action innovation and opening new markets for safe and just food.

You will find the recount of these achievements here:

PELAGO summer travel report

Report on the Cargo sailing autonomy with electric – solar energy