Torqeedo celebrates 100,000 electric boat motors

The world’s leading electric boat motor manufacturer turns 15 years old in 2020 and what a list of accomplishments it has racked up.

Sales of:

• 100,000 electric boat motors
that have been granted
130 international and multinational patents
and have won
• 20 major international awards for innovation
with their motors now being sold in
• 100 countries
through
• 2,000 sales, service and boat builder partners

With 200 employees, Torqeedo now has 100 times as many as when it started out in 2005  in a boathouse on Germany’s Lake Starnberg with founders Dr. Christoph Ballin and Dr. Friedrich G. Böbel. If you haven’t read it, check out our Throwback Thursday about Torqeedo’s beginnings.

Read Throwback Thursdays: the naming & beginnings of Torqeedo

“While we’re pleased to achieve these important milestones, Torqeedo has never been only about success as a company,” said CEO Ballin. “Torqeedo is building the future of how people move on the water. We are driven by a vision of creating technological solutions the world has never seen to deliver a climate-neutral and more sustainable boating experience.”

Invests in R&D similar to Silicon Valley companies

Perhaps the main reason that Torqeedo has succeeded is a business philosophy more akin to a silicon valley start up than a nuts and bolts engine assembler.

For many years Torqeedo has reinvested about 1/8 of its turnover to Research and Development. Hence those international and multinational patents and the company’s reputation for innovation. “Our business strategy has been to continually push the envelope and bring state-of-the-art solutions to the marine market,” notes Dr. Ballin.

While there are numerous electric-boat motor and engine manufacturers that excel by focussing on specific applications – inboard, outboard, saildrive, pod – Torqeedo is the only company that has a range of entries in all categories.

Its zero-emission motors propel everything from kayaks to bass boats to classic planing runabouts to RIB workboats to catamaran yachts to the 34 metre Spirit 111, the world’s largest yacht with electric auxiliary drive.

Long list of 2019 accomplishments

During the course of the past year, the company:

• showcased Europe’s most gorgeous and exciting electric boats at Torqeedo Electric Days on Lake Stursberg, (the video above shows  their Deep Blue system powering the new Frauscher 740 Mirage Air)
• provided electric motors for the LifeCraft and the world’s first electric freefall lifeboat (used for evacuating workers from offshore rigs)
• served as Technical Sponsor for the Monaco Solar and Energy Boat Challenge and Foiling Week’s Multi-Purpose eFoiler Design Challenge
• … started the year off by winning the Innovation Award at Miami International Boat Show in February.

They also continued investments in the development of advanced battery and foiling technologies with their Power 48-5000 lithium battery chosen to power the America’s Cup AC75’s foiling cant system. 

Did we mention that Torqeedo-powered boats assisted with undocking and docking on both sides of the Atlantic for Greta Thunberg’s low-carbon voyage from Europe to New York aboard the Malizia II?

Quite the year – actually quite the 15 years – and we wish the company many more successes in the years ahead. We’ll leave the last word about the future of electric marine propulsion to Dr. Ballin:

“Fighting the climate crisis requires that we all take a hard look at not only our individual choices, but also at the stands we choose to take as business leaders, as politicians and as citizens. We have the technology to build better, cleaner transportation, whether it’s over land, in the air, or on the sea. It’s time we do so.”