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Finnish superyacht yard, Baltic Yachts, has announced a new semi-production series, the Baltic 68 Café Racer, with the first yacht due for delivery in early 2021.
Designed by Javier Jaudenes, the man responsible for Baltic’s all-conquering 33m WinWin (launched in 2014), the 20.18m Baltic 68 Café Racer will deliver thrilling, short-handed sailing with ease.
Boosted by ‘green power’, this eco-friendly sailing yacht will be a real game changer. The design embodies the latest eco-friendly building materials and a low emission power pack featuring a 30kW electric propulsion unit. Hydrogeneration, solar panels and sustainable, modified wood decks to dramatically reduce her environmental impact, are just some of the features to have been incorporated.
“Baltic Yachts has been reacting to customer demand and we’ve been working on the details of this exciting Café Racer since last year. Our desire and ability to adapt to the technical demands of an eco-friendly yacht have resulted in an extremely exciting product.” – Henry Hawkins, Baltic Yachts Executive Vice President.
The 68 Café Racer has a performance edge and stunning looks. Reflecting the retro styling of the 1960s, this is a day sailer with attitude.
Minimising local emissions was key to the design brief, and the choice of a 30kW electric engine which also has the ability to hydrogenerate through her free-wheeling propeller while sailing, reduces emissions to virtually nil, with no fossil fuels being burned and no noise pollution.
Like a hybrid car, the Baltic 68 Café Racer comes with a range extender which can be used to charge the Lithium ion battery bank as a ‘get you home’ supplement to battery capacity. The range extender uses highly efficient micro-turbine technology which will eventually be able to run on hydrogen. With just one moving part the turbine is easy and cost effective to maintain and is so small it can be carried under your arm!
Overall power consumption was also given intensive review. Baltic Yachts have been researching ways to reduce power consumption across all of their builds and, in this yacht, the power usage of one of the most demanding domestic features, air conditioning, has been reduced by 30%. The system mixes re-circulated, less humid air with fresh air to reduce the amount of power needed to maintain the desired onboard climate. UV filters ensure the air is bacteria-free and solar panels can power the system with no draw from the battery bank.
The Baltic 68 Café Racer’s beautifully laid decks use multi-purpose modified wood, which is a sustainable, durable pine with a 50-year warranty against rot. Because it lasts longer and is hard wearing, the deck thickness and can be reduced and, consequently, weight saved. The award-winning LIGNIA Yacht deck material means use of hardwoods has been avoided but the feel and performance of a genuine deck maintained.
The interior of this Café Racer features light oak timbers and flax composites. Specialist wallpapers, wicker and paper cord then produce a light, cool and contemporary interior environment.
