WIDER 150 ‘GENESI’ – FIRST SEA TRIALS REPORT
Sea trials on the WIDER 150 “GENESI” – the recently launched 46 metre, all aluminium superyacht designed by Fulvio De Simoni in collaboration with Tilli Antonelli and the in-house WIDER design team – continue.
Since launching on the 21st of October testing has been completed on:
• The Power management system – the brain of the yacht, which automatically calls on the 4 variable speed generators to ensure that the specific power requirements of the vessel from hotel and propulsion are met at all times.
• Maneuverability, which was described by the experienced captain as “spectacular”, an important safety feature but also an advantage when considering entering small creeks and bays.
• Stability – the five zero speed gyro stabilisers are working as planned and offer a remarkable reduction in roll in various conditions.
• Speed – “Genesi” comfortably attains her forecast maximum speed of 15 knots in diesel electric mode.
• Fuel consummation levels are in line with our pre- launch forecasts and estimated to be at least 15% less than a similar vessel with traditional propulsion.
Now tests have moved on to their most exciting stage yet, as attention is turned to the lithium polymer battery banks that make up the heart of the superyacht’s power system. The batteries, supplied by EST technologies in Holland, are the latest development in LiPo (lithium polymer) batteries with a total capacity of 544kWh.
This powerful energy source is more than sufficient to supply the entire hotel system on board as well as the propulsion in what is referred to as ZEM, short for Zero Emission Mode. This fact was exhaustively tested over the last few days, as the WIDER 150 was run exclusively on her batteries in sea trials off the coast of Ancona, close to the WIDER Superyacht Division headquarters.
“The battery tests were a great success” said WIDER Founder and CEO, Tilli Antonelli. “The yacht ran comfortably at 5 knots in ZEM consuming no fuel whatsoever….but the most remarkable and memorable aspect was that she ran in total silence!”
These latest sea trials have been a source of particular satisfaction to the WIDER team who, since inception of the WIDER 150 project, have held true to their fervent belief that diesel electric technology can be applied to a superyacht with outstanding benefits to the owner in terms of performance and on board comfort.
WIDER’s mission, in fact, is to deliver semi-custom yachts on time and on budget to discerning customers who are looking for exceptional, intelligent design and the highest quality of finish. One of the stand out features of their products is the use of latest technology to reduce sound and vibration levels on board to a minimum. Owners can relax in almost complete silence with no sound of shafts turning or generators running, hearing nothing but the ocean and the sea breeze.
Once every test has been concluded and the yacht has reached the technical and operational excellence that is expected from her, she will be presented to the public in a series of events that will be announced in the near future.
The Wider150, project “Genesi” is currently for sale priced at €26,000,000.
