The Pyxis Ocean cargo ship, equipped with rigid WindWings sails as high as a 10-story building, has embarked on its maiden voyage. It will sail from China to Brazil, writes Engadget.

This voyage is unique because the 37.5-meter-high sails are designed to harness air energy to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions in shipping. The sails’ developers predict that their technology will reduce emissions by about 30%.

This figure is important as the maritime industry aims to achieve zero emissions by 2050. The reduction can be even greater if alternative fuels are used.

The project is the result of cooperation between BAR Technologies (which developed the sails), Cargill Ocean Transportation, Mitsubishi Corporation, and Yara Marine.

“The Maritime Industry is an extremely hard industry to decarbonize,” said Cargill president Jan Dieleman. “So there’s not many tools that you have. So it’s really important that we as users of the maritime industry are also going to get involved in some of the innovation and really move the industry forward.”

Earlier it was reported that several organizations and companies in the world are working on nuclear cargo ship projects. One project is run by a group of organizations based in South Korea. Another project is being developed in Norway.