AWARDS 2022 | Best River Tourist Boat – La Charente – Aister

Very unusual yet attractive and stylish with their timber-coated aluminium hulls, these boats look almost traditional.

Operating in a very beautiful part of France, their hybrid propulsion system ensures that they leave a tiny footprint and should last forever with minimal maintenance.

"They are replicas of the ships that sailed on the French rivers of the 19th century, hence the wooden lining," Aister told Baird Maritime. "They nonetheless boast modern hybrid propulsion systems that ensure silent journeys through the wine transport routes of their predecessors."

Aister said it was the company's first hybrid project with lithium batteries, which necessitated learning more about the technology. With many suppliers with different developments that are improving every day, it became imperative that the owner be updated in order to adopt the right technologies for its vessels.

The need to adopt the right technologies is influenced by what Aister recognised as the growing importance of environmental regulations.

"Such regulations will completely change both the shipping and shipbuilding industries in the coming years," said Aister. "Moving to clean energy storage sources is very challenging because it is not clear which among these will be the most suitable."

Aister said it nonetheless had one of its best years in 2022 as indicated by what it calls an expanding market for workboats.

"In particular, we believe that the number of maritime tourism vessels will increase. The energy revolution is now also a reality, and so we will also see growing numbers of electric and hybrid-powered boats."

For a list of the 2022 "Best Of" award winners, please click here.