With 23 entries competing over three days, the world’s first electric-boat regatta took place from May 29 to June 5 in Venice, Italy, as part of the Venice Boat Show. The weekend started with a parade of electrically powered boats from refitted Venice classics to the latest high-tech raceboats as the fleet idled from the Arsenale, along the Grand Canal out into the San Marco Basin and then back to their starting point.
Month: June 2021
Cox Powertrain 300 hp Diesel Outboard Motor Test
The day had finally arrived when I could test the new CXO300 diesel outboard motor from Cox Powertrain Ltd., a sea trial I had anticipated for 32 months, since attending the public debut of this landmark engine at the 2018 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. Developmental delays had led to postponements of this test until June 2021.
South Korea’s first commercial hydrogen boat unveiled
Vinssen’s Hydrogenia, South Korea’s first commercialised hydrogen electric boat, was unveiled at the 2021 Busan International Boat Show earlier this year. Hydrogenia was built by South Korean shipbuilder Vinssen and is powered by an electric drivetrain and sub-system from Danfoss Editron, a Finnish company that develops power systems for heavy-duty and commercial marine vessels and vehicles.
Spanish-Italian builder wants to revolutionise electric boating concept
The Italian-Spanish shipyard Magonis is on a bid to revolutionise the electric boating market with its new Magonis Wave e-550 which it bills as both smart, efficient, and crucially, affordable. Following three years of research and development, the innovative Magonis Wave e-550 – the first boat from the Spanish builder – made its public debut at the Venice Boat Show earlier this month.
Brunswick to acquire Navico
Brunswick Corporation has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Navico, a global leader in marine electronics and sensors for $1.05 billion. As a result of this acquisition, Brunswick will add the industry leading brands of Lowrance, Simrad, B&G, and C-MAP to its Advanced Systems Group (ASG), which includes the leading Parts & Accessories (P&A) brands in power management, digital control and monitoring, and networked devices.
Vision Marine and Hellkats Powerboats pursue electric boat speed record
Vision Marine will partner with Hellkats Powerboats in rigging a Hellkats 32’ Super-Sport Widebody Catamaran to pursue the electric boat world speed record, which currently stands at over 88 miles per hour.
“My team and I are extremely excited to partner with Hellkats,” stated Alexandre Mongeon, co-founder and CEO of Vision Marine. “This is the perfect opportunity to showcase the capability, reliability and power of our E-Motion powertrain.” The world record run will take place in November, with the goal of surpassing 100 miles per hour.
New Partnership announced to create Electric Boat championship
Electric Sea Racing Limited (‘E1 Series’) and Public Investment Fund (‘PIF’) have entered a partnership that will create the world’s first electric powerboat racing competition. The news was revealed today during a virtual launch event, where E1 Series organisers also unveiled the new design of the electric RaceBird powerboat ahead of today’s World Oceans Day.
Flux Marine testing three electric outboard prototypes
A Rhode Island start-up founded by childhood friends has been quietly working on reinventing the outboard motor and is testing three electric prototypes in the 15hp, 40hp and 70hp categories. Flux Marine Ltd is the brainchild of Ben Sorkin and Daylin Frantin, who spent summers together as youth on New York’s Lake George buying, fixing and selling old outboards.
Diesel outboards on the Atchafalaya River
Back in March, David LeBlanc, regional sales director for Diesel Outboards, invited me aboard the 42’x13′ multipurpose workboat Miss Ida, part of TK Boat Rentals’ fleet, to check out the performance of the twin Oxe 200-hp diesel outboards hanging from the boat’s stern. It was the end of April before we could get our schedules to mesh, and we made plans for a ride along. It happened that three people from Diversified Communications, our main/Maine office in Portland, were scheduled to come down for the Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) golf tournament on May 1. So, I suggested that we schedule the ride along for that week, if possible. Well, LeBlanc made it happen.
2020 IBEX Innovation Award Interview with Yamaha Marine
To meet the extreme electrical demands of today’s bigger boats, especially at low RPM, Yamaha developed a completely new Phase Angle Control charging system. Now there’s plenty of power for devices like gyro stabilizers, air conditioning, sound systems, and console electronics without the need for a generator.
