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GM Gets Into Electric Boating, Buys Stake in Pure Watercraft

We’re still some distance from full electrification, but considerable progress is being made in all the major industries. What we need right now, General Motors says, is a more holistic approach to wide EV adoption.
The Pure Outboard electric motor from Pure Watercraft 10 photos
Photo: Pure Watercraft
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So it’s making a decisive step in that direction by buying a 25% stake in the Seattle-based electric boating company Pure Watercraft. Pure Watercraft may not be a household name (yet), but it’s garnered international media attention for its outboard electric motor, the Pure Outboard, which allows for emissions-, noise- and guilt-free boating adventures, as well as a considerable reduction in maintenance and running costs.

Pure Outboard is a 25 kW electric motor that weighs 112 pounds (51 kg) and delivers the equivalent of 50 hp. It comes with one or more 8.8 kWh battery packs and Bluetooth app connectivity, and it is powerful, silent, and easy to operate. The full package costs $16,500, but the ease of mind that comes with knowing the boating outing resulted in no pollution is – as the saying goes – priceless.

It is precisely this that drew the eye of General Motors. The partnership, GM says, is based on a “shared vision” for zero-emissions mobility, as well as the need for the aforementioned holistic approach toward reaching it.

As expected, the business move will yield a new line of watercraft products, but what exactly they’ll be is yet to be announced. However, they will “leverage Pure Watercraft’s innovative marine propulsion technology and experience in the commercial marine industry [as well as] GM’s engineering, supply chain and manufacturing capabilities.”

Buying 25% ownership in an electric boating company is in line with GM’s continued commitment to greener, more sustainable transportation, GM wants us to know. The same press release announcing the latest business move touts the company’s promise to invest $35 billion in electric and autonomous technology through 2025.

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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