The marine industry has long depended on internal combustion engines, which face increasing regulatory pressures due to their environmental impact, high maintenance costs, and emissions.
Swedish deeptech company Zparq, which I met yesterday at EIT InnoEnergy’s Business Booster event in Lisbon, addresses these challenges by developing ultra-compact, scalable electric drivetrains designed for propeller-driven watercraft across leisure, commercial, and rescue sectors.
Announced just yesterday, Zparq secured €5.5 million in EU funding from the EIC Accelerator program, a blend of grant and equity investment granted to only 40 startups selected from over 1,000 applicants. This capital will support the final development and industrial scale-up of their innovative Z10 platform, enabling broader market adoption.
Zparq was founded in 2020 by Jonas Genchel, Mikael Sundberg, and Sebastian Thune, originating from a collaboration with the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm (KTH). The founders brought deep expertise in mechanics, electromechanics, and marine systems, motivated by the mission to transform marine propulsion through sustainable, efficient technology.
The company’s vision is to change the marine propulsion sector by delivering clean, quiet, and reliable electric motors designed with circularity and sustainability in mind, reducing environmental impact from production to operation. This mission aligns closely with accelerating global decarbonization goals and improving waterway ecosystems.
Genchel told TFN, “What we have done so far is that we have entirely redesigned the power supply in a motor that is 10 times smaller than anything else in the market, compared to the power output that we get. We don’t have any moving parts in it; we have no gears, we have no seals to go through it. We also have a pathway of cooling technology that enables all of this to be completed with a solar system.”
Zparq’s patented Z10 platform features the most compact and modular direct-drive electric motors available, making it suitable for a wide range of vessels, from small leisure boats to demanding commercial and rescue applications. Its technology achieves significant reductions in raw material use and CO2 emissions during production through lightweight, efficient design and advanced modularity.
The platform integrates advanced battery management, safety systems, and theft-prevention technologies, raising industry standards for reliability and security. Numerous pilot projects with OEMs and boat builders are underway, demonstrating the platform’s performance and scalability.
With the new EU funding, Zparq plans to complete full development of the Z10 platform, ramp up industrial production, and strengthen global partnerships within the transport sector. The company aims to expand commercial availability in 2025 and increase market penetration across Europe and globally.
