The clearly capable designers of the Aptera 2e have another exciting environmentally friendly vehicle on the way – a solar powered pontoon boat. The Aptera 2e designers have reworked the Tamarack Lake Electric Boat Company’s signature eco-friendly pontoon boat; the Loon and the results are impressive.

Not only are the twin hulls essentially puncture resistant through their integration with the deck, but the solar panels on the roof of the boat can be lowered to the sides for convenient off-water transportation.

The most innovative aspect of this solar powered boat is something we are seeing more often in cutting-edge eco-friendly electronic systems, which is its ability to feed energy back into the power grid. When the 1,000 watt solar panels have fully charged the battery the excess energy can be sent back into the grid while it sits plugged in at the dock.

Additionally, the materials used to build the boat get two eco-ninja thumbs up and include: recycled plastic, natural fibers and bamboo. My favorite part of the construction is its manatee-friendly shroud that houses the propeller blades. Oh the huge manatee!

The original Loon had a range of over 30 miles and a top speed of 6 knots. We haven’t seen the specs for the new model but we are expecting they will see significant improvement.