Electric Ships Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the electric ships market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period, and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global electric ships market reached a value of nearly $5.34 billion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.83% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $5.34 billion in 2023 to $8.9 billion in 2028 at a rate of 10.76%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.06% from 2028 and reach $16.44 billion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the strong economic growth in emerging markets, increasing global commercial trade and increasing government support. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period were shortage of supply of electric battery materials.

Going forward, rise in adoption of hybrid and electric propulsion for retrofitting ships, increasing defense expenditure, increasing environmental concerns and increase in seaborne trade will drive the market. Factor that could hinder the growth of the electric ships market in the future include increasing prices of battery raw materials, battery disposal challenges and challenges in charging infrastructure.

The electric ships market is segmented by type into fully electric and hybrid. The hybrid market was the largest segment of the electric ships market segmented by type, accounting for 87.6% or $4.67 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the hybrid segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the electric ships market segmented by type, at a CAGR of 15.11% during 2023-2028.

The electric ships market is segmented by mode of operation into manned, remotely operated and autonomous. The manned market was the largest segment of the electric ships market segmented by mode of operation, accounting for 84.9% or $4.53 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the autonomous segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the electric ships market segmented by mode of operation, at a CAGR of 12.48% during 2023-2028.

The electric ships market is segmented by system into energy storage systems, power conversion, power generation and power distribution. The energy storage systems market was the largest segment of the electric ships market segmented by system, accounting for 40.4% or $2.15 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the power generation segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the electric ships market segmented by system, at a CAGR of 11.19% during 2023-2028.

The electric ships market is segmented by power into less than 75 KW, 75 to 150 KW, 151 to 745 KW, 746 to 7,560 KW and greater than 7,560 KW. The 151 to 745 KW market was the largest segment of the electric ships market segmented by power, accounting for 44% or $2.35 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the less than 75 KW segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the electric ships market segmented by power, at a CAGR of 11.56% during 2023-2028.

The electric ships market is segmented by range into less than 50 km, 50 to 100 km, 101 to 1000 km and greater than 1,000 km. The 50 to 100 km market was the largest segment of the electric ships market segmented by range, accounting for 44.3% or $2.36 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the less than 50 km segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the electric ships market segmented by range, at a CAGR of 11.05% during 2023-2028.

The electric ships market is segmented by application into defense and commercial. The commercial market was the largest segment of the electric ships market segmented by application, accounting for 87.2% or $4.65 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the defense segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the electric ships market segmented by application, at a CAGR of 12.52% during 2023-2028.

Western Europe was the largest region in the electric ships market, accounting for 47.6% or $2.54 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by North America, Asia Pacific and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the electric ships market will be Asia Pacific and North America where growth will be at CAGRs of 12.17% and 10.99% respectively. These will be followed by Western Europe and Eastern Europe where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 10.60% and 10.53% respectively.

The global electric ships market is fairly concentrated, with a few large players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 37.5% of the total market in 2022. The market concentration can be attributed to the presence of large players in different geographies. ABB Limited was the largest competitor with a 9.9% share of the market, followed by Siemens Energy with 9.1%, Wärtsilä with 8.4%, BAE Systems with 5.8%, Kongsberg Gruppen ASA with 1.9%, MAN Energy Solutions SE with 1.6%, Schottel GmbH with 0.4%, Corvus Energy with 0.2%, Anglo Belgian Corporation (ABC) NV with 0.1% and Leclanché SA with 0.1%.

The top opportunities in the electric ships market segmented by type will arise in the hybrid segment, which will gain $2.88 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the electric ships market segmented by system will arise in the energy storage systems segment, which will gain $1.45 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the electric ships market segmented by range will arise in the 50 to 100 km segment, which will gain $1.56 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the electric ships market segmented by mode of operation will arise in the manned segment, which will gain $2.98 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the electric ships market segmented by power will arise in the 151 to 745 KW segment, which will gain $1.56 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the electric ships market segmented by application will arise in the commercial segment, which will gain $3.01 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The electric ships market size will gain the most in the USA at $915.98 million.

Market-trend-based strategies for the electric ships market include focusing on high-powered and technologically-advanced bass boats, focusing on battery-hybrid ships, focusing on zero-emission vessels to improve sustainability and enhance energy savings for customers, focusing on technological innovations, focusing on implementing artificial intelligence (AI) in ships to develop technologically-advanced products, focusing on launching vessel charging stations, focusing on electric foiling water taxis, focusing on strategic partnerships and collaborations.

Player-adopted strategies in the electric ships market include focusing on strengthening its business operations through securing new contracts, focusing on strengthening its business operations through the launch of new solutions.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the electric ships market companies to focus on eco-friendly innovations for sustainable growth, focus on advanced coating technologies for infection prevention, focus on innovative testing systems for enhanced market positioning, focus on strategic investments for biocompatible coating portfolio expansion, focus on high-growth segments: anti-thrombogenic and anti-microbial coatings, focus on rapid growth in metals market segment, focus on accelerated growth in medical devices and medical implants, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on diversifying distribution channels for market expansion, provide competitively priced offerings, focus on strategic pricing for competitive edge, participate in trade shows and events, continue to use B2B promotions, focus on targeted promotion for market visibility and focus on understanding end-user needs for effective engagement.