WaVeS #19 – Electric boats and boating news April 8, 2024
Plugboats WAVES (Watts, Amps, Volts, Electrons) is an occasional collection of electric boats and boating news items that we have written about before and are updating, or items we are going to write about but are waiting for more information / developments – or items that are just tidbits you might find interesting.
Here is WaVeS #19, with electric boat and boating news about:
- TEVCON, a new show / conference for electric boat companies to get in front of potential defense, law enforcement and emergency services clients
- The Zparq motor wins at the Stockholm Boat Show
- Evoy adds dealers to increase coverage in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region
- Forza reports on their financial year along with motor and drive train developments
- Two electric sailboats win at the Multihull Awards
- the battery partner of Vision Marine Technologies commissions a cutting edge facility
TEVCON – new conference/show for defence/law/emergency clean energy solutions
TEVCON is a new conference and trade show in San Diego being presented by the US Energy Defense Council to connect defense, law enforcement, and emergency response agencies with emobility and cleantech innovators. The goal is to help bolster energy resilience for critical fleets and facilities.
Exhibitors include electric, hydrogen, and hybrid vehicles, vessels, aircraft, and operational energy units. Vehicles will be available for waterfront test drives and vessels demonstrated on the waters of San Diego Bay.
Along with the clean energy transportation options there will also be demonstrations of microgrid, infrastructure, vehicle charging/fueling, vehicle to grid (V2G), and energy storage systems.
More than a dozen high profile individuals, from both government and business, will speaking about a variety of topics. They include senior personnel from every branch of the US Armed Forces as well as companies such as GM, Arcimoto ‘fun EVs’ and Dannar mobile power stations.
Also available to help simplify contracting and funding programs representatives from the Pentagon’s Defense Innovations Unit (DIU), National Security Innovation Network (NSIN), and other agencies like CALSTART, the national non-profit founded in 1992 to advance the clean transportation market in key industry sectors.
TEVCON takes place June 4 – 6. Interested exhibitors or visitor can find more information on the TEVCON website.
Zparq wins Sustainable Product Award at Stockholm Boat Show
Zparq, the Swedish startup specializing in ultra-compact electric marine motors, has won the prestigious ‘Sustainable Product of the Year’ award at the Stockholm Boat Show for its Z10 outboard motor.
The compact 10 kW (≈15 hp) electric outboard for smaller boats and dinghies uses a unique cooling technology that allows the motors to spin at higher speeds and achieve surprisingly high power for its size.
Jonas Genchel, Co-Founder and CEO of Zparq said “The feedback we’ve received for the Z10 has been overwhelmingly positive. We are absolutely thrilled to receive this award; it holds special significance for us because it aligns perfectly with our core mission and values, emphasising the importance of eco-friendly innovation in our industry.”
Evoy ramps up dealer network
High power electric outboard and inboard manufacturer Evoy has announced seven new dealer agreements: Marine Lifestyles, Powerboat & Yacht Management, Passionautica, Grondin Marine, Sjótækni, Luxmeter, and Hanse Hungaria. This will expand the availability of Evoy electric motors to Australia, New Zealand, Asia-Pacific, United Kingdom, Western & Southern France
Hungary, Poland, Iceland and Chile.
Evoy dealers Grondin Marine in Western France, Sjótækni in Iceland, and Luxmeter in Chile serve commercial customers, primarily aquaculture, and shellfish farming companies. The new dealers in other regions supply both commercial and leisure clients and joins established Evoy distributor The Green Wave, a Netherlands-based dealer that serves Benelux.
‘These new dealers and their diverse focus areas demonstrate the strong appeal of electric propulsion across multiple market segments,’ said Marte Rostrup Hofset, Evoy Chief Commercial Officer, with Evoy’s Business Development Manager Mads Roland–Glimsholt adding that ‘they help us tap into the increased interest in electric boats, and to showcase viable and scalable electric motor systems to the market.’
Forza X1 provides year end report, update on motors and drives
US electric boat builder Forza X1 reported their financial results on March 26, along with updates on the progress of their electric outboards and drive systems. Joseph Visconti, Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer of Forza X1, Inc. said cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were approximately $12,803,000 at December 31, 2023 compared to $12,767,000 at December 31, 2022.
He also said that the Company’s outboard motor has undergone an extensive redesign that incorporates a simplified frame structure using sealed and stacked custom castings. The overall shape of the motor and cowlings have been updated, and the cowlings redesigned to facilitate higher volume manufacturing processes such as thermoform and injection molding.
The motor cooling circuits have been re-engineered to optimize cooling flow rates to the inverter, which have yielded better runtime, speed, and range and aims to extend time on the water in a single charge.
The Forza propulsion system is also undergoing extensive design verification testing that consists of over one hundred different tests, including safety critical operational testing, 2,000-hour endurance tank testing, log strike testing, wave hop simulation testing, corrosion mitigation, extreme temperature testing, user interface, and sea trial runs. The system successfully passed the initial rounds of safety-critical operational testing and cooling testing and is tracking for successful endurance testing using the company’s state-of-the-art tank station.
Forza X1 Forza X1 in Plugboats
Two electric sailboats win at Multihull Awards
The Multihull of the Year awards were presented by Multihulls World magazine and the International Multihull Show on April during the first evening of the big multihull event at La Grande-Motte in the South of France.
The event was attended live by 200 people and was followed in real time on social media. The 2024 WINNER’s banners were handed over to the shipyard representatives, and the winning multihulls being exhibited at the show were quick to get them on display!
There have traditionally been 4 categories in the Multihull Awards: Sail Cruising, Sail Performance, Multipower and Multiyacht. These are awarded by public vote.
Two more categories awarded by juried selection were introduced for 2024: IMS Premiere, for any new boat being presented at the Multihull Show, and Capt’n Boat, for boats handled by professional skipper members of the Capt’n Boat platform.
Auxiliary electric propulsion for sailboats has been increasing steadily for the past 3 years, and there were two electric winners in this year’s awards. The Vaan R5 was the winner in the Sail Cruising Category sponsored by Lizmer and the new Windelo 50 took top honours from the judges in the IMS Premiere category.
Congratulations to all involved! Plugboats will be looking at the two award winners in more detail in an upcoming article.
Vision Marine partner Neogy’s new mass production battery factory
Vision Marine has announced the commissioning by its battery partner Neogy, of a new 3,000 m2 (32,000 sg ft) factory, which will enable the mass production of the high voltage (HV) batteries Vision requires for its E-Motion 180e powertrain.
The facility will be equipped with cutting-edge technology built to meet the new European standards for Li-ion batteries that are due to come into force in 2026. Under the new regulations, a genuine identity card will be introduced for each battery produced.
François Enez, Sales Director at Neogy, highlighted the importance of the factory’s future readiness. “This will enable the life of the battery and cells to be tracked from design to production. Not many manufacturers will be able to adapt to these new constraints, and we know that our industrial expertise will be a decisive asset.”
Neogy already has a production capacity of 500 megaWatt hours per year and is in the mass production phase for major customers in a wide range of fields, including agricultural robotics, electric mobility, and marine applications.
Xavier Montagne, CTO of Vision Marine, expressed his enthusiasm: “The use of HV batteries in the nautical industry demands a very high level of safety and mastery of the technology. It’s not just a matter of designing the right battery but also of producing it! We immediately identified Neogy because of its mastery of the technology, but it was certainly their exemplary factory that convinced us.”
Vision Marine Technologies Vision Marine in Plugboats
