DIESEL OUTBOARD INDUSTRY

X Shore to establish US sales office

Stockholm-based electric boat builder X Shore announced early Thursday that the company has established an official North American sales office in Newport, Rhode Island at the famed Safe Harbor Newport Shipyard. The new, year-round facility will oversee all marketing and sales activities for X Shore in the US under the leadership of North American head of sales, Patrick DeSocio. In addition to providing a domestic sales office, the location will also be used for VIP events and sea trials, with an Eelex 8000 accessible on land and in the water.

New COO at Cox Marine

Cox Marine, the UK diesel outboard manufacturer, has named Gavin Wesson as the group’s new chief operating officer. Wesson will be tasked with building a world-class operations and supply chain capability, positioning the business for its future and will be responsible for Production, Manufacturing Engineering, Purchasing and Logistics.

Yamaha introduces Harmo electric propulsion system to US market

Yamaha Marine’s US Business Unit officially introduced the company’s Harmo electric outboard system to US boatbuilders and media on Tuesday. The company says its proprietary electric outboard propulsion system, introduced as a concept at the 2016 METSTRADE Show and having recently completed testing in Japan, will be available in the US market within 18 months.

Hynova unveils hydrogen-powered production boat

Hynova, the French builder of hydrogen-powered yachts, showed off the follow up to its New Era Hynova 40 demonstrator which has recently been on a road trip by sea to promote the technology, from Marseille to Monaco – with the unveiling to press on the opening day of the Cannes boat show last week, of a scale model of its new Hynova 42. Designed by Hynova founder and president, Chloé Zaied, the 42 is claimed to be the first model to be produced in series using hydrogen stored on board, to navigate without emitting CO2, NOx gases, noise pollution, odours, or risk of hydrogen leakage.

MAN Diesel unveils new hybrid propulsion system at Cannes

Munich-based engine builder MAN Diesel unveiled it’s all-new Smart Hybrid Experience propulsion system at the Cannes Yachting festival on Tuesday, staking a claim as the first engine provider to provide a complete hybrid system from a single source. The system features multiple operation modes; Zero Emission mode, with propulsion and onboard hotel loads served entirely by the vessel’s batteries for quiet, emission-free operation; Diesel-Electric mode, with power supplied by the battery and supported by onboard generator sets; Diesel model, with propulsion and onboard power needs provided by the diesel engines; Boost mode, where the electric system complements the diesel power; and Hotel mode, where onboard power is provided by the batteries with the engines switched off.