RS Electric Boats and Cheetah Marine International are joining forces to develop a new generation of electric workboats.

The companies, both based on the UK’s south coast (at Hamble Point, and Ventnor, Isle of Wight respectively), will be working to accelerate the evolution of dependable electric boats for commercial and leisure use.

Initially electric workboats will be developed and delivered under a combination of the RS Electric Boats and Cheetah brands, with electric catamaran adventure boats to follow.

The first of the electric workboats will be launched in Spring 2023, with the first adventure boat to be displayed at boot Düsseldorf.

RS says that future boats produced under Cheetah will have the option to be made EV Ready, even if a few customers still specify fossil-fuel power. The ability to retro-fit electric propulsion will be available within the model range.

First steps include pairing designs, taking Cheetah Marine’s catamaran designs and finding synergies with RS Electric Boats’ electric-specific boat design. Cheetah Marine’s catamarans are already known for their stability, spacious working deck space and rough sea handling while RS Electric Boats specialises in fully integrated systems and managing weight reduction in the manufacturing.

Together they aim to produce electric workboat catamarans suitable for a wide range of applications.

Cheetah Marine is currently developing zero-emissions catamarans in its factory in Portugal, using experience developed from building a Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine (HICE) powered Cheetah in 2015.