A company of electric boats with roots in Torrance is taking measures to carry work boats with battery and load infrastructure to the port of Los Angeles, where diesel burning ships emit tons of carbon dioxide.
ARC Boat Co., a startup in southern California that sells electric boats for recreational use, said it will open a research and development center in the port in June.
The installation indicates a movement towards electrification in the most busy port of the Nation and marks the expansion of ARC in the commercial sector.
Arc's promise to deliver an electrified fleet of work boats arrives five years before a 2030 deadline established by the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports to make the transition zero emission equipment.
The twin ports, located in more than 10,000 acres in the San Pedro Bay, depend on heavy duty cranes, tugs and trucks to move the load. Replacing approximately 2,000 tugs in the United States with electrical alternatives could avoid more than 1.6 million cars in greenhouse gas Emissions annually, according to ARC.
“Throughout the marine industry, Going Electric has an incredible amount of meaning,” said the co -founder and executive director of ARC, Mitch Lee, in an interview. “These ships have no fumes, and can reduce their substantially operating costs.”
Electric ships require minimum and zero fuel maintenance, an attractive combination for commercial operators who wish to save money and consumers seeking to enjoy water, Lee said. ARC boats are also calmer and easier to maneuver than traditional boats, he said.
The co -founders Ryan Cook, on the left, and Mitch Lee sit in an electric boat in Arc Boat Co. on May 12, 2025 in Torrance.
(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)
The electrification of vehicles in the water could soon gain impulse, said Petros Ioannou, an engineering professor at the USC investigating transport technology.
“The main reason to become electric is really the environment,” said Ioannou. “The question is whether they can solve technological and logistics problems” presented by electric boats, including energy, scope and load limitations.
Despite the challenges of building a battery capable of promoting a boat, several companies, including Navigator and X Shore are producing and selling electrical vessels. The ARC business currently revolves around recreational boats for aquatic sports, from $ 268,000.
In an association with Portland's shipyard, Ore., Diversified Marine Inc., Arc plans to modernize a 26 -feet long truck tug with lithium -ion batteries and a transmission of 600 horsepower. The ship will be the first zero emission tug in supporting operations in the port of Los Angeles, Arc said.
Tugers are an essential tool in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, where they guide larger boats and move equipment such as barges and cranes.
“The tugboats are shortly repetitive missions that require a high torque, and begin and end in the same base of operations,” Arc said in a statement announcing their Modernization project. “Not only that makes them very suitable to go to electricity, but also drastically reduces operating expenses.”
The team with Diversified Marine allows ARC to launch its new work boat in collaboration with several entities that do business in the port, Lee said.
“Diversified already knows how to take advantage of port operations and make this ship work,” he said. “We are modernizing its tugboat and implement it in the port of Los Angeles, and we can also provide load infrastructure.”
A tugboat adapts with an electric motor in ARC Boat Co. on May 12, 2025, in Torrance.
(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)
Changing the work boats with electric diesel engine can save commercial operators approximately 50% in maintenance and fuel costs, said Lee, added that the new ARC research and development installation will provide the bases to make the change possible.
The company did not reveal how much money was putting in the research installation and the accompanying load network, but said it will probably require an investment of less than $ 10 million.
The installation will be located within a 35 -ACR research campus operated by the high profit organization. He will admit the prototype development of electrical work boats, water tests and fleet deployment, Arc said. The company builds its batteries of a separate installation in Los Angeles.
“Discarking in our ports is a critical step to achieve real and substantive climate progress,” said Altase in a statement. “The new R&D installation of ARC Boat and the load infrastructure will help the port of Los Angeles to be a global model for sustainable maritime operations.”
Throwed in 2021 by former engineers of Boeing and Spacex, ARC has the mission of electrifying everything in the water, said Lee. Before co -founding an arc with his fellow northwest student Ryan Cook, Lee grew up in the bay area and frequently sailed with his family.
ARC has received more than $ 100 million in investment funds from Risk capital based in California, including Andreessen Horowitz and Lower Carbon Capital, among others. The Startup uses 170 people, including experts with a history in Rivian and Tesla electric vehicle companies.
The company did not reveal its annual income, but said the demand for its ships is high. There are two models available to be delivered throughout the country, including ARC Sport, designed for Surf of Estela and aquatic skiing; And the arch one, a luxury cruise.
ARC is the only electric boat company that builds its own battery packages internally, Lee said.
Although the Assembly is held in Los Angeles, the pronounced tariffs of President Trump on the United States commercial partners, including a 145% tax on the imported assets of China, have still presented a challenge. Since then, the Chinese rate has been reduced to 30%.
“It definitely affects the rates and the electric vehicle market has strong ties with Chinese supply chains,” Lee said. “We are also ahead of the curve and much more integrated vertically than most companies.”
With ambitions to build electric ships capable of transporting load and traveling long distances, ARC will need to remain at the forefront of battery development, said Ioannou of USC. Producing their batteries in the country can give ARC an advantage as tariffs interrupt global trade.
“If this space will progress quickly, it will depend a lot on the technology and battery availability,” Ioannou said.
“When you pass from gasoline to electricity, there are certain benefits you get, but many headaches too,” he said.
