Electric boats might be grabbing the headlines but, with diesel-powered craft still dominant, isn’t it time we looked at greener fuel alternatives?
While there’s understandable excitement surrounding the new generation of electric boats from the likes of X Shore, Candela and Delphia, the truth is that battery power won’t be replacing the internal combustion engine in larger planing craft any time soon.
The physics just don’t add up due to the weight, volume and cost of batteries required. Depending how you calculate it, a kilogram of diesel packs 30-100 times the energy of a kg of lithium ion battery.
There’s still a place for hybrid diesel-electric drivetrains that will allow boats to creep silently into port, but the combustion engine is likely to…