Polestar partnered with Swedish electromobility firm Candela to design and produce the electric boat, Candela C-8, as per the press release. The new electric boat is “pushing the boundaries of what electric boats and ships can do,” with Polestar powering it.
Candela C-8 concept: Hydrofoil technology
Candela decided to employ hydrofoil technology for the C-8. The e-boat startup believes that a regular boat’s batteries and electric motor would not be enough to achieve its desired range.
For comparison, the hull of a conventional boat interacts with the water, opening up a sizable surface area to frictional losses. It could result in a drastic efficiency loss and a constrained range in an electric boat.
Meanwhile, retractable wings extending from a hydrofoil’s hull will produce a lifting force akin to an airplane wing. That said, the boat will rise out of the water and glide gracefully a few feet above the water once it reaches “flight” speed. The C-8 should only require a steady 23kW (30 horsepower) at its 22-knot cruising speed.
“The Candela C-8 is the first electric vessel that can travel to destinations that were previously only reachable by combustion engine boats.”
Candela CEO Gustav Hasselskog
Battery issue impedes Candela C-8’s progress
Despite the promising concept, Candela acknowledged its battery technology was not yet ready to offer a sufficient range for a mass-market product. Polestar opted to collaborate with the aquatic startup to continue the project after networking around batteries.
That said, Polestar will provide the Candela C-8 with its battery pack and charging tech, also utilized by the Polestar 2 standard range EV. These components will allow up to 57 nautical miles range, which is more than two times better than average electric speed boats.
“I called Gustav {Hasselskog}, the CEO of Candela, and checked what kind of needs they have and if a Polestar 2 battery could then fit into the hull of a Candela boat.”
Polestar COO Dennis Nobelius
Candela C-8 key specs
| Candela C-8 | Specs |
| Length | 8.5 meters (28 feet) |
| Width | 2.5 meters (8,2 feet) |
| Weight | 1700 kg (3850 lbs.) |
| Load capacity | 8 passengers |
| Battery | 69 kWh battery (Polestar 2 Standard range Single motor) |
| Top speed | 30 knots (35 mph) |
| Estimated range | 57 nautical miles (65 US miles) at 22 knots |
| Charging | DC charging, or Polestar 11 kW 3-phase AC charging |
With this significant partnership, Polestar has begun its effort to enter a new segment in the EV industry.
“For us, this is more of a brand cooperation, a good technology cooperation, where we can both learn a bit, but the real boost here is for us where we can support electromobility be it on land or on sea. We also recognize the brand and the design of the boat to be kind of similar to the Polestar. If we were to design a boat, which is not unlikely, it would more or less look like the Candela.”
Polestar COO Dennis Nobelius
