Molabo, the German manufacturer known for its unique 48 volt safe-to-touch 50 kiloWatt drive, has announced a new 25 kw electric boat motor that uses the same patented technology.

The new Aries i25 inboard delivers 25 kW of high torque power (about 35 hp) and virtually silent  zero emission operation for displacement boats up to 6 tons, sailboats up to 10 meters (32 feet), and small planing boats up to 6 m (20 ft).

It uses the same patented ISCAD (Intelligent Stator Cage Drive) technology as the company’s 50kW inboard and outboard models. All three motors deliver high performance using only 48 volts of electricity.

Without getting too technical, the rotating part of an electric motor is called the rotor and the stationary part is the stator. In conventional motors the electricity flows through copper windings that wrap around and within the stator, but in the ISCAD motor the electricity flows through rods that form a stator ‘cage’.

“That allows individual control of the current in every bar of the motor,” says Adrian Patzak, COO of Molabo, “and by doing that you can generate completely new degrees of freedom with the magnetic fields in the motor and produce higher power with lower voltages.”

Conventional windings motors with power below 20 kW (about 27 hp) can operate on 48 volts (or less), but anything above that requires higher voltage. Since voltages above 60 volts   can be life-threatening, those higher voltage systems require special safety measures and certified personnel – increasing both complexity and costs.

All of the Molabo motors operate on 48 volts. which is touch safe and requires no special training or equipment. The benefits also extend to the cable sets, which are less susceptible to faults and require less maintenance than high-voltage cables.

For boat owners looking to switch to electric propulsion the Aries i25 offers a compact, easy to install safe voltage solution at an accessible price point. It also give naval architects, designers, manufacturers, and boatyards a more cost effective high-performance electric option.

Molabo was founded by Patzak and Florian Bachheibl in 2016, three years after they first started working on the ISCAD  idea, when they were students at Munich’s University of Federal Defense.

Read more about Molabo’s ISCAD technology

I spoke with Patzak last year about the reaction to their work and he said there was some initial skepticism, even from other engineers. They persevered, though, and in 2018 their invention received the German Mobility Award along with the Create the Future Design Award from the engineering industry magazine Tech Briefs.

The first inboard iteration of the Molabo 50 kw model went into production in 2020 and in 2023 they launched the Aries R50 outboard, with both models winning for “New Propulsion Technology of the Year” at the Electric and Hybrid Marine Awards.

Those 50 kW motors can now be found on boats from a variety of yards, including the Frauscher 650 Alassio, Capoforte SQ240I, Design Boots Tender 06e, Helios Omega 6.5, MY-Elegance S,  ECO Inspiration 1 and Earthling E-40 Catamaran.

The new motor uses the MolaConnect S Box system architecture, a smaller and more economical version of the MolaConnect system already proven in those production boats. Remote service and maintenance are through the MolaLink IoT (Internet of Things) gateway.

The i25 battery system is made with Victron Energy components, using safe LiFePO (lithium iron phosphate) chemistry that provides high energy density at an affordable price per kWh. Four compact battery modules with 30 kWh battery banks each weighing 52 kg (114 lbs) make installation easy and enable optimum weight distribution in small hulls. If needed, the capacity can be expanded to 48 kWh for specific customer requirements.

 The new Aries i25 inboard will make its debut at this year’s METSTRADE industry show in Amsterdam November 19-21.

Patzak and his team are excited. “Our clients have been waiting for an economically feasible system to integrate into smaller boats,” he says,  “and we delivered.”

Molabo website   Molab motors for sale in Plugboats Marketplace

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