The 13th annual Monaco Energy Boat Challenge (MEBC) takes place July 8-11, with university students, electric boat builders and alternative fuel experts converging from around the world to meet at the host Yacht Club de Monaco (YCM) and explore greener marine propulsion in all shapes, sizes and use cases. Listen to this article as a podcast The MEBC has grown with the rise of electric boating since 2014 while also leading the pace of the technology that is changing how we travel on water. The number of teams, university students and alumni having participated is a testament to the event’s importance: 1,825 innovators from more than 30 countries and every continent except Antarctica. At this year’s Challenge there will be more than 50 different competitors from 20 countries on four continents competing in four classes: ENERGY CLASS: Flagship of the Challenge. Twenty six university teams from 11 countries design and build clean-energy racing catamarans — electric, hydrogen and solar — and push them through three trials based on speed, slalom and endurance – winding up with the always exciting championship race. OPEN SEA XPERIENCE: Brings eleven production-ready electric and hybrid boats from eight countries — tenders, RIBs, yachts and performance craft — to showcase their latest models and technologies and face off against each other in real open-water conditions. Will anyone get over the 50 knot mark to break the speed record of 49.84 knots (92.3 kph / 57.35 mph) set last year by the Frauscher × Porsche — 850 Fantom? SEALAB CLASS: A pure naval-architecture challenge where university teams design and build cutting-edge boats. Think emerging energy architectures: hydrogen, methanol, electric, solar, wingsails, hydrofoiling prototypes, innovative hull designs – making up the floating laboratories for tomorrow’s production vessels. AI CLASS: The only class with no one at the helm. University teams build fully autonomous, pilotless boats that perceive, decide and steer for themselves. Guided by LiDAR, cameras, GPS and neural networks, they compete in four autonomous races: Docking, Fleet, Figure of 8 and Slalom. Read Plugboats’ coverage of all the MEBCs since 2019 While the ‘Challenge’ in Monaco Energy Boat Challenge refers to the competitions, it can also be seen as a challenge to the boating and yachting industry to come up with solutions that are better for our planet – while also referencing the environmental challenges we are all facing. To that end, the MEBC also encompasses two days of conferences for the yachting industry. On Thursday, July 9, the Advance Yachting Technology Conference takes place. Yacht and superyacht builders, designers and companies in the supply chain will gather to discuss and explore how new design approaches need to encompass clean propulsion and how decarbonization goes hand in hand with onboard efficiency and digital transformation. Day Two, Friday July 10, sees the 7th annual Alternative Fuels and Sustainable Yachting Conference, with presentations, Q&As and seminars providing an objective analysis of alternative fuels in the maritime sector — hydrogen, methanol and other innovative sources, with insights into research, real-world applications and future developments. With the exception of the yachting conference, the public is invited to attend all of the races and events of the MEBC. It is a very exciting and inspiring to visit The Quayside of the Yacht Club de Monaco where hundreds of university students from all over the world are fine tuning their zero emission boats for the different races. Each of these talented engineering, naval architecture and other students are intent on making the world a better place and their enthusiasm is contagious. Jutting off the quayside is the YCM E-Dock, which allows up to 20 electric boats to recharge at the same time during the Challenge. It was conceived by the Club in 2023 as part of its commitment to sustainable navigation, and built in conjunction with Aqua superPower, the global marine fast-charging network. The eco-pontoon has flexible solar panels on the roof and is equipped with both AC and DC chargers through Aqua’s high-power marine charging infrastructure (Aqua 200 HPC) in association with Kempower Satellite technology. It is the largest public marine fast-charging installation on a single pontoon, eclipsing even the facility Aqua constructed for the Paris Olympics sailing events. Below are the schedule, some further descriptions of the events, and some past highlights from the MEBC. At the bottom of this article is a list of all competitors with links for more information. Wednesday July 8: Grand Parade and E-Boat Rally Wednesday kicks off the MEBC with a Grand Parade of all competitors in all classes, and the E-Boat Rally, where competitors in the Open Sea and SeaLab Classes tour the harbour of the Yacht Club and then take to the open waters of the Mediterranean past the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, a magnificent building perched on the cliffs not far from the Prince’s Palace. Thursday July 9: Qualifying, YCM Speed Record, Manoeuvrability, Dock and Fleet Energy Class: Qualifying Laps. Each boat with its assigned pilot shows its pace over timed laps on the course in Port Hercule. Energy Class, Open Sea and SeaLab: YCM Speed Record Off the coast of Monaco, running along the shore over a course inspired by the boundaries where the Yacht Club hosted the first international powerboat contest in 1904. This is the most spectacular moment of the week, open to all eligible boats. Two 500-metre runs are combined into a a single one-kilometre result. Last year the Frauscher × Porsche — 850 Fantom (that has the same motor as the Porsche Macan electric SUV) set the record with a speed of 49.84 knots (92.3 kph / 57.35 mph). This year the latest collaboration between the two companies – the Frauscher × Porsche 790 Spectre – will have its crack at the record, competing with boats and motors by Explomar, Taiga, Evoy/Vita, WIA Yachts, Weenav and ZeroJet. Read: Frauscher-Porsche 850 Fantom Winner in 2025 Gussies Electric Boat Awards SeaLab: Manoeuvrability A precision-handling trial: each boat runs a technical course in the harbour, judged on agility, control and the responsiveness of its propulsion and steering. AI Class: Docking and Fleet In Docking, each boat approaches and docks autonomously, with no human input — a test of precise perception and control. In the Fleet competition, several autonomous boats share the water, navigating and avoiding one another in a live fleet scenario. Friday July 10: Endurance, 16 Nautical Mile Speed Race, Figure of 8 Energy Class: Endurance Race The speed events are the ones that create all the excitement, but the endurance race is where the engineering students are really put to the test on developing technologies and designs that will have a better chance of success with a public that is looking for range in their electric boats. The Endurance Race is run over the same course as the YCM Speed Record and the title goes to the boat that can complete the most laps within a specified time using only a single charge (or tank of hydrogen). Open Sea and SeaLab: 16 Nautical Miles Unlike the short range YCM Speed Record, this long-distance run from – Monaco to Ventimiglia Italy and back – tests range, energy management and reliability — the true measure of a credible zero-emission design over a real-world distance. Last year’s event had a nail biting finish when the A/XE from Evoy-Vita and Axopar had the lead and looked like it was going to cruise home for the victory but was nipped at the last second by the NRGX 6.3 RIB powered by ExploMar’s WAVE 300 (220 kW) electric outboard system. Neither of those boats are entered this year (although Evoy-Vita and Explomar are powering other entries), so we’ll see who can come out on top in 2026! AI Class: Figure of 8 A continuous figure-of-eight course testing path-planning, turning and obstacle handling over time. Saturday July 11: Slalom, Endurance, Manoeuvrability and The Championship Open Sea: Manoeuvrability A precision-handling course in the harbour, judged on agility, control and the responsiveness of each electric drivetrain. SeaLab: Endurance The SeaLab final on the championship course, combining speed and stamina to crown the best all-round prototype of the week. AI Class: Slalom A fast slalom through the buoys — the sharpest test of real-time object detection and reactive steering. Energy Class: The Championship This is the absolute highlight of the week for sheer entertainment, excitement and electricity – both in the boats and in the crowd atmosphere. All of the 26 university teams compete in a head to head knock out competition set on a course in the main harbour of the Yacht Club. The race involves each team going around multiple markers and the way it is set up it is difficult to see who is winning until the final 25 metres or so. The passion of the pilots competing is exceeded only by the passion with which all the members of all of the teams quayside and around the Club cheer on their comrades as only university students can. At the end of all the competitions the points from each event are tallied up to declare the overall winner of each Class. The University of Bologna is truly the Greatest Of All Time in the Championship Races, the Energy Class itself and maybe ever the entire MEBC as they have won four of the past five Energy Class titles. Let’s see who wins this year! 2026 Monaco Energy Boat Challenge Competing Teams and Entries ENERGY CLASS (Click on the team name for more info) WANNSEA – Germany: Technische Universität Berlin URPM RACING – Puerto Rico:University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez UNIVERSITY OF BOLOGNA – Italy:Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna TEAM SEA SAKTHI — India: Kumaraguru College
