Swedish boat startup Candela will unveil the production version of its electric hydrofoil C-8 watercraft at CES 2023 in Las Vegas on January 5th. Featuring a 100% carbon-fiber hull, the boat is powered by the company’s C-POD, a 55-kW direct-drive electric motor that requires no scheduled maintenance for 2000 h.

The premium 28-ft craft, with a top speed of 30 kt and the ability to cruise for over 2 h at 20 kt, is the first production day cruiser equipped with Candela’s electric hydrofoil system that reduces water friction by 80%. The hydrofoils are the key to “cracking the code” for electric-powered, long-range, high-speed travel at sea, which Candela believes will change boating forever.

“With the C-8, we set out to make the first no-compromise electric boat with maximum range and speed, but we’ve ended up with a new and improved class of craft, which also happens to be electric,” said Gustav Hasselskog, Candela’s Founder and CEO. “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. Once you’ve experienced flying above the surface in absolute silence, it’s hard to go back.”

After the launch of its first electric hydrofoil boat, the limited-edition C-7, in 2019, Candela’s 50-strong team of engineers spent two years perfecting the hydrofoil system and software to create the higher-volume production C-8. A key enabling technology is the company’s C-Controller, an onboard computer that uses inputs from a variety of sensors to adjust the hydrofoils in real time to balance the boat in waves, wind, and at different loads.

The hydrofoils can be retracted for entering shallow harbors or easy trailering, The C-8 has a draft of fewer than 2 ft with the hydrofoils retracted. In extreme wave heights, the boat can be driven as a traditional planing hull though less efficient craft.

The C-8 features a cockpit with seating for eight, a large sunbed, a front cabin equipped with beds for two adults and two kids, and a marine toilet. All settings, from turning on the cooler to navigation, are controlled from the boat’s 15.4-in touchscreen or remotely from the Candela app.

The C-8 can be configured with a hard top, a T-top, or an open cockpit day cruiser and starts at $390,000.

Earlier in December, Erik Eklund, Chief for Commercial Vessels at Candela Technology, took a near silent 150-km (80-nm) day trip in the C-8, charging with only existing AC power (no fast charger) on the standard small boat docks in the Stockholm Archipelago. The day trip is longer than most boaters will do even on a nice summer day and the energy cost was about €12 compared to €200-350 for a normal combustion-engine boat. Check out the YouTube video here.

Beyond the C-8 “halo” leisure boat, Candela has bigger plans to transform public water transportation. Unveiled earlier this summer in Venice, the P-8 Voyager (Futurride coverage here) is designed to replace traditional water taxis and commercial passenger watercraft that create water pollution, engine noise, and waves that damage historical architecture. In addition, the City of Stockholm will take delivery of the first P-12 Shuttle (Futurride coverage here), a 30-passenger, all-electric water shuttle in 2023.

The company is in talks with over 100 other municipalities about water transportation solutions.