Entrepreneurs behind FlyteBoat fill a market gap using a small fleet of battery-powered vessels built right in Nova Scotia

A new water taxi service in Halifax promises harbour vistas, a convenient schedule and quick trips. What it can’t offer are exhaust emissions or engine noise, because the vessels operated by FlyteBoat are all-electric. 

FlyteBoat, which launched operations in the middle of May, first started ferrying competitors around the Halifax Harbour for the Optimist North American Championship sailing regatta. 

Quickly it scaled up to regular scheduled harbour crossings six days a week (going to seven for the summer) and private charters, along with a Parks Canada contract to transport employees to and from Georges Island, just off the Port of Halifax. 

The service is the product of partners Chris Watters, the high-performance director for Sail Nova Scotia, and Topher Kingsley-Williams, a lifelong sailor and entrepreneur. 

The project first began last fall when Kingsley-Williams and his father – a naval architect – purchased B.C.-based electric boat builder, Templar Marine. The duo moved operations to Nova Scotia and Topher Kingsley-Williams and Watters began formulating a plan to provide zero-emission public transportation on the water.

A gap in the market

“The biggest gap in the market was water taxis,” said Watters in an interview with Electric Autonomy Canada. “People had done it before here, but there weren’t any … since COVID. 

“It was a really easy choice to use these [boats], because they’re built for moving people.”

Kingsley-Williams notes the routes FlyteBoat operates are well-suited for the Templar electric boats. The Halifax Harbour is around two kilometres across and Georges Island is only around 200 metres from downtown Halifax. 

“We looked at the geography and we thought this is a perfect area to operate these short-trip vessels,” he said.

The fleet

FlyteBoat has three boats in its fleet: two eight-passenger models and a larger vessel for 12 people. Along with enclosed and heated cabins, they have 20 kWh batteries that Watters says are good for four to six hours of operation between charges. 

One boat relies on battery swaps, so the vessel can be used continuously. The other two use conventional 48-volt charging at their docks at the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship (COVE) facility in Dartmouth. 

Watters and Kingsley-Williams are still finding their sea legs when it comes to the charging side of operations, trying to figure out what method works best and if different infrastructure is needed.

“It’s something that we’re understanding more as we do more trips and as we build schedules around the demand,” said Kingsley-Williams.

Plans for expansion

That demand has been high for the FlyteBoat service and the two entrepreneurs already have ideas for expansion: increasing the fleet, continuing through the winter months and even venturing further with routes into the Bedford Basin with larger electric vessels. 

Kingsley-Williams says taking the high cost of diesel fuel out of the equation has been a large part of the success of FlyteBoat. But other aspects of electric boats have also had their hand in riders’ embrace of the service.

“You’re removing the noise and the smell, and some of those things that aren’t as pleasant,” he said. 

“When you’re taking someone across the harbour, they can enjoy the view, they can enjoy the moment, they can have conversations with the people they’re with. It changes the experience.”