Hydrofoiling electric boat startup Candela is finally on Australian waters

Swedish electric speedboat startup Candela is finally in Australia, making its debut at the Sydney International Boat Show next week.

While New Zealanders have been enjoying the Candela’s electric boats (EBs) for two years , they’ve now crossed The Ditch, thanks to luxury boat distributor Carbon Yachts.

Carbon’s Mary Bickley said they’ll be will be offering daily test “flights” on the C-8, the world’s best-selling electric leisure boat, on Sydney Harbour during the boat show.

“Combining cutting-edge technology with a commitment to sustainability, the C-8 represents the future of boating. It offers a dramatic improvement in comfort when compared with conventional powerboats,” she said.

“We believe that the C-8 can redefine the boating experience for Australian enthusiasts as well as engaging an entirely new market.”

What makes Candela’s boats stand out from the crowd is they foil. And those underwater wings reduce energy consumption by 80% compared to a traditional motorboat, was well as smoothing out the ride on choppy seas and reducing wake.

The Candela C-8 was named the 2023 European Boat of the Year. It has a cruising speed around 22 knots (40.7kmh) and range of up to 57 nautical miles (105km) – so a little over two hours. The 8.5m vessel carries up to eight people, with room to sleep overnight in the bow.

Candela’s arrival coincides with the installation of Australia’s first fast-charging station for EBs on Pittwater, north of Sydney, with a dozen planned along the East Coast at d’Albora marinas.

Hydrofoils were once a familiar sight on Sydney Harbour, offering a 15-minute commute between Manly and Circular Quay from the 1960s to early ’90s when they were replaced by JetCats.

In New Zealand, they’ve embraced the Candela P-12 electric hydrofoil ferry, which can carry 30 passengers at a cruise speed of 25 knots, with a wake less than 15cm high, reducing erosion of the banks of World Heritage-listed Lake Manapōuri,

It offers daily transport for workers at Manapōuri Power Station, Aotearoa’s largest hydro plant.

The P-12 entered service in Stockholm earlier this year as part of a nine-month pilot.

Candela founder and CEO Gustav Hasselskog believes Sydney is also an ideal place for the P-12 ferry, which he says can halve operational costs compared to conventional diesel boats.

“We could easily electrify waterborne transport here, offering faster journeys for passengers and lower costs for the operators,” he said.

The hydrofoil is making a comeback in the electric boat era as a solution to long-range, high-speed travel on water.

“We set out to make the first no-compromise electric boat with maximum range and speed, but we ended up with a new and improved class of craft, which also happens to be electric,” Hasselskog said.

“It’s a far superior experience to old-school hulls with combustion engines. Boaters no longer must contend with vomit-inducing pitching and slamming or the deafening roar from revving outboard engines. It’s hard to return once you’ve experienced flying above the surface in absolute silence.”

Mary Bickley said she’s witnessed a surge in interest in electric boats across Australia.

“The C-8’s design and performance have set a new standard for innovation within the marine industry, highlighting the potential for electric boats to offer luxury, performance and sustainability,” she said.

The boat is the perfect present for a recently excited Canva investor or unicorn founder, costing around A$750,000 “sail away”. Delivery is around six to eight months from Stockholm, where the marine tech startup was founded in 2014.

And for anyone who drives a Polestar, you can get the matching boat, with the Swedish electric car maker collaborating with Candela on the C8-Polestar edition.