In an industry first in Ireland and one of the few in the world, the Irish National Sailing and Powerboat School has dropped traditional diesel propulsion in preference of the smooth, quiet and environmentally favourable electric propulsion system.
The school’s teaching yacht an Elan 36 works hard teaching Competent Crew to Yachtmaster courses throughout the year. As you can imagine, it racks up considerable hours on the engine, originally a Yanmar 3GM30, which, after many years of service, needed to be replaced. The school in conjunction with its commercial division MarineServices.ie had always considered that when the time came to go electric.
Irish National Sailing and Powerboat School teaching yacht, an Elan 36 is now fitted with an electric inboard engine delivering good performance (below)
Marine Services had considerable experience in the electrification of vessels driven mainly by the quiet, vibration-free characteristics of the engines that were so useful in TV and Film support at which the company excels. Such was their knowledge that ePropulsion originally based in China but now with European and UK hubs worked with Marine Services and employees Kenneth Rumball and Lorcan Tighe to train both to be certified to install and maintain the range of engines offered. Kenneth and Lorcan have worked through 2024 supplying and installing their range of electric engines based on their 48V and 96V architecture. These include engines suitable on small dinghies to larger engines useful for powering small rescue boats and small fishing vessels.
To prove the concept, when the Elan 36 needed a new engine, there was obvious synergies to install an ePropulsion engine and show exactly how easy it is to convert a boat to electric and showcase the advantages of same. One of the major advantages for the school and for teaching is the lack of gearbox and limited moving parts. Maintaining a boat that is constantly in use as a teaching tool leads to considerable wear on the engine and gearbox, electric engines are direct drive, meaning no gearbox and minor maintenance compared to their diesel counterparts.
In December 2024, the final decision was made, and an propulsion i20 inboard engine landed in Ireland with no time to spare; the next day, the now well-used Yanmar engine was hoisted out of the Elan. A thorough clean of the engine bay and new engine mounts saw the replacement engine dropped in a day later.
Two G100 batteries that have been mounted low in the vessel where the original water tanks were
The new engine is powered by two G100 batteries that have been mounted low in the vessel where the original water tanks were. This has meant no structural or cosmetic changes were necessary to the boat also keeping weight where it was on the vessel. The water tanks have been moved forward and the vessel still retains the original capacity of water and no change to the overall weight of the vessel.
The ePropulsion i20 slotted in where the old Yanmar engine was and connected to the existing propellor shaft, giving a really neat OEM style installation.
The ePropulsion i20 slotted in where the old Yanmar engine was and connected to the existing propellor shaft, giving a really neat OEM style installation
Initial testing and expectations are very positive; using only 5KW or 25% of the possible power in total silence, the boat is achieving 6 knots, which it only managed on the old engine at 2,800 RPM. The silence and instant delivery of torque is mind-blowing.
We often get asked about charging, once the sails are hoisted and we are sailing above 3 kts with our specifically selected feathering propellor the system will regenerate like an electric car under braking. Throughout the year, we will also be installing solar panels on the vessel to top up the batteries, thus making the vessel self-sufficient and sustainable. There is also an AC charger on board that allows up to charge the batteries from the standard 16amp sockets found on most marinas.
The system is very cost effective like electric cars negating the need for maintenance every 100 hours, couple this with the rising cost of diesel, not mention diesel bug, we believe the system is already realising cost savings.
For those seriously interested in converting their vessel, please get in touch with the Marine Services team, [email protected]
We have solutions for shaft-driven and sail-driven sailing vessels as well as solutions for outboard-powered craft.
