Silent 80 Sales Rise As Demand Grows for Solar-Electric Catamarans
Austrian company Silent-Yachts has racked up six orders for the solar-electric Silent 80 catamaran, which is being built in Italy.
Silent-Yachts, the Austrian company specialising in oceangoing solar-electric production catamarans, has sold two more units of its Silent 80 to take total orders for its flagship to six. The company’s first model was the Silent 55 built in China and it’s currently also producing the 60 in Thailand plus the 44 in Australia.
The 24.3m Silent 80 can travel about 100nm a day using solar power
The first units of the 80 are under construction in Italy, where the first hull was transported from one production facility to another 50km away at the end of March. As of early April, Silent was able to maintain production at two out of four production sites.
Michael Kohler, founder and CEO of Silent-Yachts, said: “We are happy to be able to continue our production despite uncertain times for the world economy. We have two production sites in Italy currently closed, but we plan to resume working as soon as the governmental regimentations allow. We expect some delays but nothing serious.”
In Italy, the first hull was transported 50km between production facilities
The 80’s exterior and interior is by Marco Casali of Too Design, while Amedeo Migali of MICAD is responsible for naval architecture. As there’s no engine room, the 80 has a huge port-hull garage for a 4.5m tender and can also carry an amphibious car and a gyrocopter on floats.
The 24.3m yacht has a 10.95m beam and a 60sqm saloon with a galley, lounge and dining area. The hulls can house four to six double or twin guest cabins, plus two crew cabins. The first hull has a four-cabin layout with two owner cabins, with the aft master suite including a study, walk-around closet and sauna.
With no engine room, the Silent 80 has a huge garage in the port hull
Using 70 high-efficiency solar panels, the 80 is capable of 6-7 knots in silence so can cruise in the region of 100nm per day, with unlimited range. The standard Cruiser version has twin 135kW engines, while the E-Power version features 250kW options and can reach 16 knots. A Hybrid Power version is also available with twin 220hp diesel engines and two 20kW electric motors.
Werner Puntschart, Silent-Yachts’ Chief Sales Officer, said: “We are currently expanding our team to be well prepared for the future. We go on having enquiries and are experiencing growing interest in our yachts, which can be traced back to the energy independence and unlimited range.”
The foredeck features plenty of lounging space and ambient lighting
The 80’s base price is €4.43 million (about US$4.85 million). Silent-Yachts provides 25-year solar panels warranty, eight-year battery banks warranty and lifetime warranty for the electric motors.
