While motorboats and jet skis look like harmless fun above the waves, under the waves they’re a nightmare for the aquatic beings that live below. And although the pollutants that motors spew into the water are one part of the problem, it’s the loud noise these sea-faring vehicles create that is terrible for sea creatures.
A boat that runs on an electric motor would solve these two issues in one go. With that said, let us introduce you to Swedish boat manufacturer, X Shore, one of the first electric boat-makers to target the consumer market.
They have created all-electric boats that use the “power of silence” and lack of diesel engine fumes to facilitate a deeper connection to nature. X Shore launched its first boat model, the Eelex 6500, earlier this year, and rode it in UK waters this month during one of the most high-profile zero-emission sea voyages of all time — environmental activist Greta Thunberg’s transatlantic trip to the UN Climate Summit in New York, aboard the sailboat Malizia II. The company said its boat “supported the safe departure” of Thunberg’s solar-powered racing yacht from the port of Plymouth in the UK on 14 August.
As of now, X Shore’s main electric model can cover a distance of 100 nautical miles on a single charge, making it suitable for leisure boating. All in all, the Eelex represents a step toward more sustainable sea travel, where the obstacles to the spread of electric engines have long been poor range, lack of charging facilities and slow speeds.
