The first Arcona 435Z – zero emissions – yacht has departed from our yard for her final destination of the USA. Green Yachts, our US agents who specialise in zero emissions yachts, are on board. It was great to welcome them to the yard and show them around, they’ve already reached the UK and today departed for Portugal before crossing the Pond.
Graham Balch, Managing Broker for Green Yachts said, “It has been an incredible journey so far in our electric Arcona 435Z. We have greatly appreciated the fact that we have never degraded the serenity of sailing with the noise and the fumes that we have tacitly put up with as sailors when we turn on a diesel engine.By going electric, the entire journey feels at one with the sea.
It also has been a learning experience. With an electric motor, we have the range to get out of any doldrums, away from any storm or into any port, but it’s not something we can use as liberally as a diesel engine. Thus we have actually been sailing more and refinding those mid and light wind sailing skills that have been underutilised. At first, it felt frustrating. When our boat speed was 4 knots (or perhaps even 5), that would have been the point I turned on the diesel engine on past deliveries. But instead, we trim the sails or point a few degrees differently – in other words we do what sailors have done for centuries and made sailing our primary propulsion and our electric motor secondary, which should be the case for all of us sailors. But, we have let the diesel engine usurp this balance. Changing a habit is never easy, but once past the initial phase, life is better and that is how I feel after sailing 1300 nautical miles on the first leg of our transatlantic journey with an electric motor. We achieved an average boat speed of 6.4 knots including during a 24 hour stretch of almost no wind at all, ironically when we reached the windmill farms off the coast of England.
Electric motors make the quality and performance of a sailboat all the more important and why the Arcona 435Z is a perfect sailboat for an electric motor because it is such a high-performance sailboat that it can achieve speed in winds and wind angles above what many other boats can achieve making the 435Z and all the other high-performance sailboats made by Arcona a perfect complement to going electric. Thus, the electric motor in time could spell the end, not only for the diesel engine, but production sailboats that are not designed to sail as well as they should be and that too is great for sailors around the world.”
Green Yachts has a mission to create a new wave in the sailing world by bringing green (electric) yachting to the mainstream US audience. They partner with brands like Arcona Yachts as we’re committed to high quality, beautifully engineered yachts, to create the perfect combination of speed, comfort, and luxury.
The Arcona 435Z is the beautiful and perfectly engineered yacht that exemplifies the Arcona brand, but now made ‘green’ with the Oceanvolt Electric Motor and full electric system.
In the Arcona 435Z we have multiple electric systems that are helping make this stunning vessel the green yacht it is. The 15 kW 48V system is run from the usual place in the engine compartment. Each lithium ion battery is 3.7 kWh and are connected together to form a 30kWh battery bank.
The benefit of the Oceanvolt system, especially on long journeys such as this one, is its ability to regenerate electric power using hydro regeneration. This is controlled from the helm station and the power is created from water spinning the propellers due to the boat’s forward movement. Regeneration begins once the vessel passes a speed of 4 kts and will continue until speed drops below 3.5 kts. Solar panels are also lined along the coachroof and offer a supplementary power generation.
The regeneration capability, allows us to use nature’s energy, to create new electrical power even in the middle of the Atlantic ocean.
Not only is the electric motor green, but it’s also quiet and smooth operation is so enjoyable to use. For example entering port you can pay attention to the surroundings without the usual loud drone that accompanies a diesel engine.
If you would like to find out more about the Arcona 435Z or indeed the rest of the yachts in the fleet, please contact your nearest Arcona agent or email info@arconayachts.se. Watch this space for further updates from the Green Yachts crew and their transatlantic adventure. Fair winds!