Financing decarbonization through wind-powered vessels

This research aims to present innovative maritime shipping initiatives to reduce carbon footprint and gases emission. Indeed, large international shipping firms and banks are generally reluctant to finance innovative sailboats' construction, due to technology uncertainties, extra costs and delivery times. This context justifies the need to finance shipping decarbonization as emissions are high and increasing. Hence, this paper contributes to the existing literature as it fills the gap of lack of studies on maritime transportation using wind-power vessels, by exploring business models adopted by French companies and shippers' coalition, models that can be adopted or serve as a source of inspiration for other decarbonization initiatives in the future. Besides, this paper gives an appropriate interpretation of the EU regulatory context evolving to be favorable for agreements aiming to reduce the carbon footprint. The methodology consists of an analysis of the French ventures in sailboat shipping through case-studies and the interpretation of the regulatory context applicable to the financing of innovation in the maritime industry. We conclude the need for additional support and change in regulation even that recent EU regulatory adjustments appear as a signal sent to private investors to finance technological innovation for maritime decarbonization.