Vento Is a Megasailer Superyacht Concept That’s Truly Green but Still Luxurious

They are sail-assisted superyachts, which means that they still rely heavily on engines for propulsion. The superyacht industry continues to have a huge problem regarding sustainability because it’s still building vessels that destroy the very environment they’re exploring. Vento would change all that.

Vento is a sailing superyacht concept by Nuvolari Lenard. Described as a 100-meter (328-foot) megasailer and presented at the 2021 edition of the Venice Boat Show, Vento stands as a “manifesto for environmental protection” and an “appeal” for the industry to think outside of the box, do a roundabout and return to more traditional means of exploring the world’s waters.

Unlike all the other sail-assisted superyachts out there, Vento is completely green. Unlike them, it is still just a concept, though. But the theory is solid, and studio founders Carlo Nuvolari and Dan Lenard are working to make the project happen.

“Vento is much more than an avant-garde, environmentally conscious yacht: it is a revolutionary concept that forces us to look reality in the face, see it through different eyes and deal with it with a different mindset,” the design studio says. “An electric motor and batteries are not enough to make a boat green, we need to change our mentality, to acquire a global vision that is able to balance the benefits and costs of certain choices and project them into the future.”

The idea for this megasailer was to design something that would be truly sustainable, so that meant a pure sailing yacht. That said, the designers are now working with a “leading company in the market” to fit Vento with a hybrid diesel/electric system that would include variable-speed generators and variable-pitch propellers, ensuring maximum efficiency and minimum consumption.

Vento has a lightweight hull made of aluminum, while the superstructure and the masts are made of composite. The keel is retractable, which means variable length on the waterline: the longer the hull, the less residual resistance, which means smaller waves that impact the coastline, the studio explains. Thanks to the retractable keel, the draught is between 5.5 m and 9 m (18 feet and 29.5 feet).

The profile is aggressive, with a reverse bow that allows for extended waterline length (which translates into better stability and improved performance) and a sloping stern that reduces displacement. In short, while long, Vento is light and built to sail efficiently and with minimized impact on the environment.

The sail plan is another innovation presented by Vento. The masts and sails resemble airplane wings rather than the sail rigs we’ve seen before, and that’s because this plan is called a Wing Sail, which has been proven to be more efficient than traditional rigs—and with a smaller sail surface, too. Designed by Ilan Gonen, an Israeli former fighter pilot, aerodynamics expert, and keen sailor, this Wing Sail features carbon masts of 64 meters (210 feet) and a total sail area of 2,100 square meters (22,604 square feet).

While it’s completely green, Vento is just as luxurious as any other superyacht worthy of the name. The design studio did not release renders of the interior, but assurances were offered that high luxury would be standard.

Accommodation on board would be in six double cabins: four VIPs, one super-VIP, and the master suite, which would sit on the main deck and have a private terrace. Outdoor spaces are “huge and varied,” including a spa, beach club, the flybridge, “and all the other extras you’d expect to find on a megayacht of this size.” That last phrase is vague enough to allow for the inclusion of anything from a gym to a cinema and more of the outrageous amenities that are so popular with today’s superyacht multi-millionaire clientele.

As noted above, if Vento is built, it could come with hybrid, perhaps diesel, propulsion. But Nuvolari Lenard stresses that this sailing superyacht speaks to a client that is sensitive to environmental issues. That means “regaining control of sailing time, respecting the whims of the wind which, in the Mediterranean, means moving around in the early hours of the day and during afternoon thermal breezes…” It’s only fitting then that this megasailer is called Vento, which means “wind” in Italian.