Hybrid Diesel Electric Boat is Production First

In brief: Boat designer and builder Seaway has gone to production with the Greenline 33, a diesel electric hybrid 33-foot yacht - a world first.

Vehicle in the news

Make/Model: Greenline 33
Manufacturer: Seaway

The word

The world's first production hybrid electric and solar powered boat is the Greenline-33, a 33-foot sailing yacht produced by Seaway. It utilizes several technologies to conserve energy and operate at unusually high speeds.

Comparable in energy use to a sailboat of the same size, the Greenline 33 is equivalent to a gas-guzzling planing powerboat.

At cruising speed (4-5 knots), the boat is all-electric and can be powered by energy produced and stored by the solar array on its rooftop. It has lithium-ion batteries capable of moving it up to 20 miles per charge (240Ah/7kW), but with sunlight shining down, the range is much further. The panels produce 2kW.

At top speed (10 knots), the boat uses a Volkswagen Marine TDI 75-4 diesel engine, which also can charge the batteries.

And so ...

The downer to this beautiful symmetry of technology, yachting, and green is its price tag: $300,000USD.

Photo credits: Seaway