While Europe's biggest yards race to put carbon fibre and electric power into their superyacht tenders, a small Northland business has quietly built its own version and is now taking it to the world.
Europe's tender builders are all in on carbon and electric
The superyacht tender market has turned into one of boating's most competitive corners. Italy's Amare Group recently launched the AMY 330e, a 290kg carbon fibre electric tender with a superyacht-inspired layout. Austria's Silent-Yachts followed with the Silent Tender 400, a carbon-hulled electric tender weighing just 90kg. UK-based Pascoe International has sold its first fully electric superyacht limousine tender, built for a major European new-build. Industry watchers have flagged a broader shift toward 30 to 50-foot luxury tenders and chaseboats, driven by owner demand rather than marketing spin.
Where ONETenders fits
Into that field steps ONETenders, founded by Grant and Emma Nelson and based in Marsden Cove, Northland. Its range spans four models across two hull platforms: the 3.5m M35 monohull (45kg, up to 15hp), and three catamarans, the 3.5m C35 (70kg, up to 15hp), 3.8m M38 (100kg, 15-25hp) and 4.2m C42 (120kg, up to 40hp, seating five to six). All four are built from autoclaved prepreg carbon fibre.
Unlike several of the European entrants going electric-only, ONETenders has kept both petrol outboard and electric propulsion on the table across the range, a deliberate call the company says keeps pace with where electrification is heading without locking owners into one system.
Small business, global targets
Three years of design, prototyping and testing sit behind the range, and ONETenders has only now opened talks with prospective dealers and distributors in international markets. "We wanted to create what we believe is the ideal modern rigid tender," says co-founder Nelson, pointing to seakeeping, low weight and stability as the non-negotiables behind the design brief.
The company says it is chasing the right partners rather than the biggest network, targeting yacht dealers, tender specialists and marine distributors already connected to premium owners. No NZ retail pricing is published yet and no international partners are confirmed, but for a family business working out of Marsden Cove, the ambition is unmistakably global.
