Following the successful debut at Cannes Yachting Festival 2021, the Windelo 50 has been shortlisted in the British Yachting Awards, European Yacht of the Year 2022, and Multihull of the Year 2022.
Olivier Kauffmann, CEO of Windelo, said: “This is a great honor. To pick up three nominations with our first boat is a significant recognition for the team. Our catamarans are light, fast, and comfortable cruisers with important green credentials,” Mr. Kaufmann reflected, “these nominations send out a strong message that the media shares the enthusiasm of our clients, with already eleven Windelo catamarans sold (five Windelo 50s and six Windelo 54s).”
Designed in partnership with the architects Christophe Barreau and Frédéric Neuman, this fast blue-water cruising French catamaran features an electric propulsion system that includes great hydro-generation facilities, solar panels, and the possibility to work under generator when it’s a necessity. With the development of an eco-composite in basalt fiber and PET foam, this is definitely an eco-friendly boat.
A new living space
“The challenge was to build a boat marrying performance with the joy of sailing and to create pleasant and spacious living areas at the same time. The boat has an innovative cockpit layout with rigging converging at the helm station midships. It also features new handling of the living space aft of the nacelle,” says Christophe Barreau.
Behind the mast, the forward cockpit has two helm stations protected from the wind and spray, a good view of the sails and the bows, and all the running rigging at hand. At anchor, the cockpit can be well protected from the elements and opens up to the stern.
The self-tacking facilitates maneuvers also with limited crew; the lifting daggerboards are placed at the center of the hull to optimize their hydrodynamic performance.
A modular layout
Aft of the cockpit everything is flush, offering a large modular space that can be opened up. “We have focused our attention on the geometry of the material and visual boundaries of this space and on the way the doors open”, adds Barreau. Once they are open, they “disappear” so that the interior space blurs with the exterior.
Hybrid engine power
The two electric engines are hooked up to a bank of lithium batteries. These can be charged in different ways, using solar panels as well as the electric engines’ ability to operate via hydrogeneration. These two systems combined mean you can use green energy for short periods when the electric engine is in use.
Sailing for longer times on the engine will require starting up the generator after one or two hours, depending on the battery strength chosen. This extends the boat’s cruising range to around 800 nautical miles.