Polestar and Candela join forces to make electric boats mainstream

In a watershed moment for electrification at sea, the two Swedish companies, Polestar and Candela, have entered into an agreement. Polestar will supply the battery and charging systems for Candela’s revolutionary hydrofoiling speedboats.

The deal lets Candela tap into state-of-the art automotive battery technology and scale up production of its best-selling electric boats.

– To make electric boats mainstream, we need to build thousands of boats every year. Working together with Polestar, we’re able to bring the scale of production and world class engineering from the automotive industry to the marine sector, says Gustav Hasselskog, Candela CEO and founder.

Combining Polestar’s batteries with Candela’s hydrofoil technology, both companies aim to drive the growth of sustainable electric mobility.

– I am fascinated by way Candela’s boats glide elegantly and efficient through, or better, over the water – amazing proof of the great aesthetics and experiences modern, sustainable technology can create. That Polestar will be part of future projects with Candela by supplying an essential part for the innovative propulsion of their boats, is awesome. As a battery supplier to Candela, we can help drive the transition to cleaner oceans and lakes, and electrify waterborne transport, says Thomas Ingenlath, Polestar CEO.

The deal between the two Swedish companies is an attempt to overcome the two major hurdles for electrifying boating. The first hurdle is the high energy consumption of conventional powerboat hulls, which has led to poor performance in electric boats. Candela’s hydrofoil technology overcomes this obstacle by cutting powerboat energy usage by up to 80%.

The second hurdle has been the prohibitively high cost of marine batteries for electric boats.

Electric boatbuilders typically have so far relied on smaller, boutique vendors of marine battery packs. Scarcity and high costs of these battery packs have prevented electric boats from matching ICE vessels.

– Thanks to the partnership with Polestar, we’re able to secure state-of-the-art battery packs for our production ramp-up. As the number of electric vehicles increases worldwide, a steady battery supply will become increasingly important to hold a competitive edge and allow us to compete with combustion engine boats, says Candela CEO Gustav Hasselskog.

Candela’s hydrofoil craft are the fastest and longest-range electric boats on the market.

Flying at 30 knots, the Candela C-8 and P-8 Voyager use up to 80% less energy than conventional boats of the same size due to reduced water friction. The computer-actuated foils also give them “superpowers”, such as superior seakeeping, zero wake and a silent ride.

After launching the high-volume Candela C-8 leisure boat in fall 2021 and raising €24 million from EQT Ventures, the Swedish boat maker is moving into a new production plant. There, they will produce the P-series commercial vessels and C-series leisure boats.

The battery supply agreement marks the start of a broader partnership, with Polestar and Candela committed to exploring further collaboration.