It looked like a pretty ordinary day on the water at the US
naval base in Norfolk, Virginia: a few short bursts of speed, a
nice tail wind, some test manoeuvres against an enemy boat. But
the 49ft gunboat had algae-based fuel in the tank in a test
hailed by the navy yesterday as a milestone in its creation of a
new, energy-saving strike force. The experimental boat, intended
for use in rivers and marshes and eventually destined for oil
installations in the Middle East, operated on a 50/50 mix of
algae-based fuel and diesel. "It ran just fine," said Rear
Admiral Philip Cullom, who directs the navy's sustainability
division. The tests, conducted on Friday, are part of a broader
drive within the navy to run 50% of its fleet on a mix of
renewable fuels and nuclear power by 2020. The navy currently
meets about 16% of its energy and fuel needs from nuclear power,
with the rest from conventional sources. The navy plans to roll
out its first green strike force, a group of about 10 ships,
submarines and planes running