Market Potential

According to the US Coast Guard’s statistical reports, there are over 12 million vessels in the USA alone. Many boats on the Coast Guard’s report are too small to benefit from fuel cells. However, approximately 7 million boats are between 16 and 26 feet in length, many of which have growing requirements for electricity for engine starting, lighting, navigation and communications. Another half million boats are between 26 and 40 feet in length, a size where the appetite for electricity expands to include appliances such as televisions, DVD players, air conditioners and refrigerators. And at the upper end, vessels with even greater electricity requirements, there are over 75,000 boats over 40 feet or greater in length in the USA, not including tugs, freighters and tankers.

When coupled with renewable energy technologies like solar and wind, fuel cells may revolutionize yachting. Boaters are generally more likely to adopt new technologies than the general population. Solar panels and wind generators found a niche on boats long before these technologies became popular in land based applications. Similarly, GPS navigation systems, now costing as little as $100 and common place on cars and used by hikers, found an early niche in the boating market at initial cost of well over $1,000.

Another positive trend is the proliferation of “electric-only lakes” and other protected waters where the noise and pollution of diesel and gasoline engines have been banned. These bodies of water are excellent markets for fuel cell powered electric motor propulsion systems that are quiet and leave an exhaust consisting mainly of distilled water. European markets and other Kyoto protocol countries may be even more attractive for fuel cells, due to more stringent environmental standards limiting CO2 emissions from fossil-fueled combustion engines.

The marine industry is a multibillion-dollar global marketplace. There are approximately 17,000,000 recreational vessels in the U.S. and 100,000 large international ships. The boating market has experienced stable growth for well over thirty years. Vessels in the marine market range from $10,000 to more than $100,000,000 in value each. Ignoring the vast numbers of small boats, the approximate year 2000 populations and annual sales for marine vessels are presented on Table 1 for categories of interest. 

Data presented on Table 1 are compiled from a number of sources including the U.S. Coast Guard, National Marine Manufacturers Association and Arthur D. Little. Other than the Large Commercial Vessels and the Recreational Powerboats with outboard motors, these estimates are diesel driven boats greater than 20’ in length with less than 1 Megawatt (MW) of power. All values are for the U.S. market only, except for Large Commercial Vessels, which is a worldwide population and annual demand. Large Commercial Vessels are diesel, diesel electric and gas turbine driven. Recreational Vessels with outboard motors are generally smaller gasoline driven boats.

Power systems for the above vessels are generally about 10% of the overall vessel cost. In addition, 10-15% of existing marine vessels are re-powered (or re-engined) each year. New motors in the recreational marine market account for $2.5 billion per year.

Series production, custom made boats, and retrofitting used vessels are all categories of interest for HB Marine systems. Each has different customers and distribution channels. For example, power systems for series production boats are generally installed by the boat manufacturer, but can also be purchased as an aftermarket accessory.

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