British narrowboat manufacturing
Designed and built as a complete boat.
The hull, propeller envelope, motor, batteries, charging and domestic loads are considered together from the beginning.
Award-winning British narrowboat builders
Bespoke Electric Narrowboats Built in Britain.
Oakums creates luxury electric narrowboats for cruising and living aboard. Each electric canal boat combines quiet propulsion, lithium battery storage, solar charging and intelligent monitoring around the way you intend to use it. Current electric prices start from £145,000.
Bowless electric from £145,000Open Bow electric from £175,000Closed Bow electric from £185,000
The complete system
More than replacing an engine.
An electric narrowboat works best when propulsion, battery storage, charging and domestic energy use are designed together. Oakums develops the system around the boat, the waterways you intend to cruise and the time you expect to spend away from shoreline power.
The aim is quiet, responsive control with an installation that remains understandable, monitorable and serviceable throughout ownership.
New electric narrowboats for sale
Three Oakums ranges. One considered electric platform.
Choose a 40ft Bowless, 60ft Open Bow or 60ft Closed Bow, then develop the propulsion and energy system around your cruising plans. Oakums builds bespoke electric narrowboats rather than forcing every owner into the same package.
Bespoke electric propulsion
VETUS E-Line or a tailored Torkmar system.
Motor choice and output are confirmed against the selected range, expected waterways and agreed cruising duty.
Evidence-led specification
Understand what the system can actually do.
Oakums explains usable battery storage, charging sources, onboard demand and monitoring before the specification is agreed.
Electric motor options
Electric narrowboat motors matched to the boat.
There is no single motor specification for every owner. Oakums offers a proven standard platform and can develop a more individually configured alternative where the brief calls for it.
Standard Oakums platform
VETUS E-Line
A compact marine electric propulsion platform suited to responsive control and canal speed cruising. Motor output and the surrounding installation are confirmed against the selected boat and agreed use.
- Established marine manufacturer
- Compact installation
- Quiet, responsive control
- Integrated as part of the complete energy system
Individual configuration
Torkmar
A Torkmar system can be considered where the brief benefits from a more individually configured propulsion and energy package. Oakums matches the motor, battery capacity and charging strategy to the intended cruising pattern.
- System led configuration
- Propulsion and energy planned together
- Designed around individual cruising requirements
- Output confirmed for the selected build
Final motor choice, output and equipment are confirmed in the written specification for each boat.
A standard, not a restriction
Bespoke electric propulsion, designed for the owner.
VETUS E-Line gives Oakums a dependable starting point, but a standard platform will not suit every route, boat or ambition. Where the evidence supports a different answer, Oakums will explore it rather than forcing the brief back into a conventional package.
That flexibility is disciplined by engineering. Every alternative still has to work as part of a safe, serviceable and properly documented boat.
Energy ecosystem
Four parts. One considered system.
Each part affects the others. Oakums plans the installation as a whole rather than treating the motor as a standalone product.
Propulsion
Motor output and control selected for the boat, expected waterways and intended use.
Battery storage
Lithium capacity planned around propulsion and the energy used by everyday life aboard.
Charging
Shoreline, solar and generator support combined according to how and where you cruise.
Monitoring
Useful information arranged so you can see what remains, what is arriving and what is being used.
Electric, made simple
How an electric narrowboat energy system works.
Efficient electric boating comes from making propulsion, storage, charging, domestic power and monitoring work together.
Energy in
Solar, shoreline or generator
Store it
48V battery bank
Use it wisely
Propulsion and life onboard
Use less
The easiest energy to replace is energy you never used.
Waste less
Conversions and unnecessary loads take something from the battery.
Design for the journey
Optimise for how a narrowboat actually cruises, not a headline power number.
Motor and propeller
Power is only useful if you can turn it into thrust.
A narrowboat is a heavy displacement hull. It does not climb onto the surface and plane like a speedboat, so the propulsion problem is different: move a large mass of water efficiently at relatively low boat speed.
01
Start with the propeller
Diameter, pitch, blade area, hull clearance and shaft speed determine how effectively the propeller can absorb motor power and accelerate water astern. A larger propeller can offer substantially more blade area, but only when the hull geometry gives it room to work.
Why 20in matters: a 20-inch diameter disc has 56.25% more area than a 16-inch disc. That does not mean 56.25% more thrust by itself, but it demonstrates how quickly the available swept area increases with diameter.
02
Then match the motor
Torque is the motor's twisting force. For displacement propulsion, useful torque at low shaft speed allows a larger propeller to be driven without relying on very high RPM. This is why comparing electric motors by headline kW alone can be misleading.
Compare sustainable output. Peak or instantaneous torque is useful for manoeuvring and acceleration, but the rated duty and sustainable torque tell you much more about what a motor can actually maintain.
A worked example
Törkmar Tidal 15kW
143 NmRated torque
245 NmInstant torque
1,000 rpmNominal speed
Törkmar publishes these figures for its 48V Tidal 15kW. The point is not simply that it is a 15kW motor. It is engineered around high torque and relatively low shaft speed for displacement craft.
Propeller → water → thrust
- Motor turns the shaft. Torque overcomes the hydrodynamic load on the blades.
- Propeller accelerates water astern. Blade geometry creates a pressure difference and changes the water's momentum.
- The boat is pushed ahead. The reaction force is thrust. Matching motor, propeller and hull determines how efficiently electrical energy becomes useful movement.
- More throttle is not free. As speed and propeller loading rise, power demand can rise rapidly. Efficient canal cruising therefore depends on operating the whole system sensibly.
Diameter
How wide the propeller is. More diameter generally gives more disc area, subject to hull, skeg and counter clearance.
Pitch
The theoretical distance the propeller would advance in one revolution through a solid medium. Pitch must suit motor torque, RPM and hull load.
Blade area
The working surface transferring force to the water. Diameter alone does not describe the whole propeller.
Oakums principle: do not choose the motor in isolation. Establish the hull and propeller envelope, understand the cruising duty, then match motor, shaft speed, batteries and charging around the real boat.
AC versus DC
Follow the energy, and electric boating becomes much easier to understand.
Your propulsion battery is a DC energy store. The motor and controller, together with many efficient onboard loads, can use DC. Familiar domestic equipment normally expects 230V AC. An inverter creates that AC supply, but every conversion and permanently energised device has an energy cost.
Solar
DC generation
MPPT
Controls solar charging
48V battery
Stores DC energy
DC route: avoid a conversion
The propulsion controller, DC lighting, USB charging and suitable DC equipment can take energy from the DC system without first creating a 230V household supply. That can reduce unnecessary conversion and standby losses.
This does not mean everything should be DC. It means each load should be considered as part of the energy budget.
AC route: battery → inverter → appliance
For a kettle, induction hob, oven, hairdryer and other mains equipment, the inverter synthesises 230V AC from the battery. Modern quality inverters are efficient, but not lossless, and they also consume some power simply by being awake.
So the question is not merely how big is the battery? It is what is on, for how long, and how many conversions are happening?
Why inverter size matters
Power, kW
How quickly energy is being used. A 2kW appliance running for half an hour consumes roughly 1kWh before allowing for conversion losses.
Energy, kWh
How much has been used over time. Battery capacity and daily solar production make much more sense when discussed in kWh.
Simultaneous load
An inverter must cope with what may operate together. Hob, kettle and washing machine together create a different design case from each appliance used separately.
One boat. Two electrical worlds.
| Energy path | What happens | Design question |
|---|---|---|
| Solar → battery | DC is regulated by the solar charge controller and stored | How much roof area, shading and seasonal yield? |
| Shore or generator → charger → battery | AC is converted to controlled DC charging | Can the charger actually use the available shore or generator supply? |
| Battery → controller → motor | DC energy becomes controlled electrical drive and then mechanical shaft power | What does the boat really draw at cruise and under manoeuvring load? |
| Battery → inverter → 230V loads | DC is converted to AC | What loads overlap, and is leaving the inverter on worthwhile? |
Oakums approach: we design around the energy journey, not a collection of impressive component sizes. A larger inverter, charger, generator or battery is only useful when the rest of the system can make sensible use of it.
Three charging methods
Solar, shoreline and generator charging.
A resilient electric boat should not be explained through one ideal summer day. The charging mix needs to work across your real cruising year.
Shoreline
Connect to a suitable mains supply while moored for dependable battery charging and onboard power.
Solar
Generate energy throughout daylight hours, with output varying by season, weather and shading.
Explore solar and off grid cruising →Generator
Specify generator support where winter, extended cruising or unusually high demand makes it appropriate.
Understand the numbers
Electric narrowboat power and battery capacity.
Electric specifications become easier to compare when three different measurements are not treated as if they mean the same thing.
Motor power
Describes the rate at which the motor can deliver power. A larger number is not automatically a better boat.
Stored energy
Describes the energy held by the battery bank. Usable capacity and genuine demand matter more than a headline alone.
Charging rate
Describes how quickly energy can be returned under suitable conditions. The source and battery limits both matter.
Oakums will show how the proposed figures relate to your expected cruising and domestic use before the specification is agreed.
Lithium battery systems
Stored energy, safely managed.
Battery capacity is selected after considering propulsion, cooking, refrigeration, laundry, entertainment and working aboard. Monitoring, system protection, isolation, ventilation and access for future servicing form part of the design.
- Capacity planned around real demand
- Integrated monitoring and system protection
- Isolation and service access considered early
- Optional additional protection discussed during specification
Monitoring
Everything needs to talk to everything else.
Useful monitoring turns a complicated electrical system into information a skipper can act on. The display should answer real questions rather than simply present more numbers.
SoC
Energy remaining
Input
Energy arriving
Draw
Propulsion demand
Temperatures
Motor and controller
Source
What is active and contributing
A change in motor draw can itself be useful information, prompting a check of conditions or possible propeller fouling. Good data should reduce guesswork, not create more of it.
Choose with evidence
Electric, serial hybrid or diesel?
Oakums offers diesel and electric propulsion. The right answer depends on the experience, budget and independence you want from the boat.
Electric may suit you if
You value quieter cruising and integrated energy.
It can be a strong fit when your cruising pattern, charging opportunities and onboard demand support the proposed system.
Look carefully if
Your plans involve sustained demand or limited charging.
Long consecutive cruising days, shaded moorings and high winter use may increase reliance on generator or shoreline charging.
Diesel may suit you if
You prefer familiar refuelling and long range simplicity.
Oakums can specify diesel where it is the more practical and better value answer for your intended use.
Battery basics
The language, translated.
You do not need to become an electrical engineer, but a few terms make an electric boat much easier to understand.
Battery chemistry comparison
LiFePO4 versus lead carbon
| Characteristic | LiFePO4 | Lead carbon |
|---|---|---|
| Charge efficiency | 95–98% | 80–88% |
| Guide cycle life at 80% DoD | 4,000–6,000+ | 1,500–2,500 |
| Cold conditions | Needs temperature management | Generally more tolerant |
These are broad guide figures, not a promise for every product. Actual performance and service life depend on the selected equipment, temperature, charging, discharge pattern and system management.
Solar panels
The roof is part of the power station.
Panel construction, installation, shading and how the boat is used all affect the result.
Semi-flexible
Low profile and practical on a cruising narrowboat. Substrate quality matters because a steel roof expands as it heats, so the installation needs to accommodate movement.
Rigid and tilting
Often lower cost and capable of being aimed towards the sun, useful where a boat spends longer stationary.
Cell technology
| Cell technology | Guide efficiency |
|---|---|
| Monocrystalline | 19–22% |
| Monocrystalline PERC | 20–23% |
| Monocrystalline bifacial | 20–25% |
| Polycrystalline | 15–19% |
Solar figures are guides rather than guaranteed output. Roof area, panel specification, installation, season, temperature, weather and shading all affect real generation. Explore the complete Oakums solar approach →
Installation
Small details carry very large currents.
Cable size, run length, terminations, fuse voltage rating and manufacturer torque settings all matter.
Cabling
Conductor size must suit current, distance and allowable voltage drop.
Terminations
Correct crimping, insulation and clean contact surfaces are critical to a reliable high-current system.
Fuses and torque
Fuses must suit both current and DC voltage. Terminals should be tightened to the equipment manufacturer's specified torque.
Electric narrowboat prices
New electric narrowboats from £145,000.
Choose the boat first, then develop the propulsion, battery and charging specification around your intended use.
Electric narrowboat buyer guides
Compare the technology before choosing the specification.
These Oakums guides cover the decisions buyers most often need to make.
Electric propulsion for narrowboats
How the motor, propeller, batteries and controls work together.
Electric narrowboat charging
How shoreline, solar and generator support replenish the battery bank.
Battery capacity guide
Translate voltage and amp-hours into usable stored energy.
Generator sizing
Match generator output to the charger, battery and real onboard demand.
Winter living
Plan charging, solar, heating and battery reserve for colder months.
Diesel versus electric narrowboats
Compare cruising style, charging, range and ownership priorities.
Solar power for electric narrowboats
Understand roof area, seasonal yield, shading and charging strategy.
Off-grid narrowboat systems
Plan lithium storage, inverter capacity and life away from shoreline power.
Live Oakums fleet data
See live solar, consumption and battery information from Oakums boats.
Questions for a bespoke builder
Compare specifications, processes, documentation and aftercare properly.
Build and price your narrowboat
Choose a range, propulsion type and the options that matter to you.
Electric narrowboat FAQs
Questions buyers ask before commissioning an electric canal boat.
How much does a new electric narrowboat cost?
Current Oakums electric prices start at £145,000 for the 40ft Bowless, £175,000 for the 60ft Open Bow and £185,000 for the 60ft Closed Bow. The final price depends on the agreed specification and optional equipment.
Can an electric narrowboat cruise away from shoreline power?
Yes, when battery capacity and charging are designed around the intended cruising pattern. Solar, shoreline and generator support can be combined according to route, season and onboard demand.
What is a serial-hybrid narrowboat?
A serial-hybrid narrowboat is propelled by an electric motor while an onboard generator can recharge the battery bank when solar or shoreline charging is insufficient.
Does Oakums build bespoke electric narrowboats?
Yes. Oakums configures propulsion, batteries, charging and monitoring around the chosen boat, intended waterways and the owner's expected use.
Start your Oakums
Plan an electric Oakums.
Tell us where, how often and how far you expect to cruise, plus the equipment you want aboard. Oakums will explain the practical system, current range price and next step.