France boosts electric boat conversion budget

The budget to convert tourist boats to electric propulsion is to double, the body in charge of France’s rivers and canals has promised.

Inland boat hire is one of the quiet giants of French tourism, generating an estimated €1.4billion of revenue for operators and villages along their routes.

By far the majority still use diesel and, with a government target of 2050 for the industry to stop emitting carbon dioxide, Voies navigables de France (VNF) is also pushing for total conversion to bio-diesel.

“There is no miracle solution but we are following lots of paths,” said the deputy managing director in charge of development, Aurélie Millot.

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€60million budget 

The organisation, which is owned and funded by the state, budgeted €60million over five years (2023-2027) to help boat owners buy new electric models or retrofit existing craft.

Its earlier five-year budget was €30 million, and the body was criticised for the complexity of its loan application process.

Along with grants for electric boats, VNF is also leading a drive, in partnership with electricity firms, to install charging points, both on tourist waterways and commercial canals.

It would mean that boats tied up overnight or loading/unloading goods would not have to keep their engines running to supply electricity. Noise and smoke from this often leads to complaints from residents living near the waterways.

The new diesel which all boats were meant to use from January this year is called HVO (huile végétale hydrotraitée). It can be used without any modification of existing engines and Ms Millot said it cuts CO₂ emissions by 90%.

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Floating electric hotel

One of the pioneers of electric cruising in France, Dominique Renouf of Bateaux pour la Planète, built her first electric-powered floating hotel 17 years ago, and now builds and rents small battery-powered boats on the Garonne canal for week-long cruises.

“At last things are starting to move, but there is a long way to go,” she said. “We finally got a grant of €195,000 to help us build 10 boats this year, after being refused twice before.”

The boats she builds, called Phoebes, have aluminium catamaran hulls and can accommodate a family of four. They cost €160,000 new, which is competitive with similar diesel models, but she says attempts to interest other boat rental companies have failed.

“We are developing a concept where people can set up businesses as a franchise, with structured financing because commercial banks are not interested,” she said.

“That way when people see more boats on the river, they will see that electric boats are feasible.”

She added that VNF had been “hot and cold” over electric boats.

“They finally gave us the grant, and cut the annual tax for tourists boats by half for zero-emission boats, which means we pay €600 this year instead of €1,200.

“But at the same time they charge us €300 a week to use charging points, when a full charge uses just €5 worth of electricity. I asked why, because it obviously discourages people from turning electric, and they simply said: ‘We have to eat!’”