SWEDISH TECH FIRM Candela has announced it has raised €24M, led by EQT Ventures, with participation from existing investor Chris Anderson, the Curator of TED. The new capital will be used to triple R&D, invest in production automation and scale up the sales organisation to meet demand for Candela’s electric leisure and commercial vessels worldwide.
The shift to zero emission boats and ships has been hampered by the enormous energy consumption and correspondingly low range of conventional electric boats. Flying on computer-guided hydrofoils that reduce energy consumption by 80% compared to conventional planing craft, Candela’s vessels soar above the waves with 2-3 times the endurance of the best conventional electric powerboats. The active hydrofoil system stabilises the vessels in-flight using advanced software that accounts for waves and side winds, allowing for a wake-free and smoother ride.
Candela’s high-tech hydrofoil vessels have been the first to offer the combination of long all-electric range and high speed. Since 2019, Candela has led electric boat sales in Europe with its foiling C-7 sportsboat. Now, the company is building on this success with the mass market Candela C-8, a day cruiser that the company has close to 100 orders for, just three months after launch.
The new investment will be used to triple Candela’s R&D team that consists of leading engineers from the aerospace, software, and electronics industries. Funds will also complement the company’s Stockholm facility with an additional highly automated factory, which will produce the Candela C-8 alongside the commercial vessels launched earlier this year: the shuttle ferry Candela P-30 and the water taxi Candela P-12.
The Candela P-30 ferry – the world’s first electric hydrofoil passenger vessel – has been commissioned by the Region of Stockholm, where it is set to commence traffic in 2023. It will shuttle passengers to and from the city’s vast archipelago. According to the Region’s calculations, Candela P-30’s energy-saving hydrofoil system will shed operational costs by 42% compared to current diesel vessels, as well as allow for faster travel and more frequent departures.
Gustav Hasselskog, CEO of Candela, commented: “We’ve shown that our hydrofoil tech is the key to make electric boats commercially viable. The investment from EQT Ventures will allow us to double down on our mission to speed up the transition to fossil fuel-free lakes and oceans. It took us four years to develop the technology and two more years to master it. Now we are ready to scale up fast.”
Candela Technology’s mission is to speed up the transition to fossil fuel-free lakes and oceans. Based in Stockholm, Sweden, Candela develops and builds the world’s first electric hydrofoil watercraft.
