Stockholm-based X Shore, an electric boat manufacturer, announced on Tuesday that it has secured SEK 300M (approximately €26.5M) in a funding round led by SEB Investment Management AB with participation from existing and several new shareholders.

X Shore says it intends to use the funds to scale its production and reach profitability. Additionally, the company will also use the capital to accelerate North American market operations, which accounted for the majority of 2022 sales.

X Shore’s CEO, Jenny Keisu, says, “The X Shore mission is a crucial one – to lead the transition to electric vessels, in the process of decarbonising an industry that must transition to net zero in our lifetime. We are at a critical time for the planet and companies like X Shore are all-important in helping heavy-polluting industries achieve net zero.”

The announcement comes around a year after raising €45.5M in an oversubscribed funding round. 

X Shore: Developing electric day cruiser 

Founded by Konrad Bergström in 2016, X Shore is a climate-tech and electric boat company. The company’s boats don’t use fossil fuels and have minimal impact on marine wildlife. 

Made in Sweden, The company has become the world’s leading supplier of electric boats with customers in markets such as North America and Europe.

The new X Shore 1 was launched in September 2022 around its significantly low price point, at around a third of the cost of other high-performing electric boats, but with the same high standards, industry-leading engineering, and design, claims the company. 

The electric boat is powered by a 125 kW motor and a 125 kWh battery. As per the company’s claims, it can reach speeds of 30+ knots with a cruising speed of 20 knots, similar to the Eelex 8000.

The Swedish company says its latest electric boat has a range of 50 nautical miles and features fast DC charging that lets 0-80 per cent charging in 50 minutes. 

“The X Shore 1 brings all the technology from the Eelex 8000, such as the highly appreciated and intuitive user interface, range estimate, route planning, and man overboard safety feature,” says the company. 

The Investor

SEB Investment Management AB, which operates as an investment management firm, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB with headquarters in Stockholm.

SEB Investment Management says, “SEB investment Management is committed to helping fund the transition to net zero and we are very pleased to be able to support X Shore in their vital work of decarbonising the global boating industry.”