The World's First Fully Solar-Powered Tender Hits Market

Sunpower Yachts, as the name suggests, has unveiled the world's first 100% solar-charged tender.

The Solar-eJET 3.3m is designed to charge directly from a yacht’s solar energy system, meaning the boat requires no fuel or cables for shore power hookup. “The Sunpower Solar-eJET tender marks a turning point in clean marine innovation,” said Grant from Sunpower Yachts in a press release.

“No more trailing fuel cans or relying on marina power. Now your tender is as self-sufficient as your yacht — powered by the sun, always ready to go.”

The forward-thinking boatbuilder was founded in 2018 and makes a wide range of electric and solar-focused vessels including cruisers, yachts, sailboats, power catamarans, and tenders. Based in Australia, the company has a global footprint with offices and dealerships in the U.S. (Florida), Germany, Dubai, Fiji, Ibiza, Cyprus, Monaco, London, and more. Its tender manufacturing is done at the Antalya Shipyard, Turkey.

The inflatable Solar-eJET 3.3m is engineered for direct integration with Sunpower's existing solar energy system. When stowed in the tender bay of its mothership, an embedded charging port allows the tender to plug directly into the yacht’s solar charging station.

The intelligent interface measure's the tender’s battery capacity and charges as needed without requiring a cable plug-in, a separate charger, or other hardware. When ready for use, simply detach the tender from its storage position and use accordingly.

According to the company, the tender is ideal for beach landings, water sports, or exploration. The high-performance brushless DC motor with liquid cooling ensures quiet propulsion with zero emissions, while the rugged aluminum hull and Hypalon fabric offers reliability in all conditions.

Weighing only 105 kg (230 lbs) excluding the battery, with an LOA of 3.3 m (10'10") and a beam of 1.74 m (5'6"), the Solar-eJET is outfitted for a 10 kWh lithium battery pack with 22 kW of jet drive propulsion, or the equivalent of roughly 30 horsepower. The boat has room for up to five passengers with a max weight capacity of 425 kg (930 lbs).

The Solar-eJet comes standard with an aluminum deck with a black and grey foam teak finish. Waterproof LED navigation lights are standard, as are grab rails, a bow locker, and an anchor box. Integrated cushioned seating is built into the Hypalon frame. Four aluminum davit lifting points with towing rings are dispersed around the hull. The vessel is available in both grey and white. You can see the Solar-eJet in action and pushing its top speeds in the video below:

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