We are indebted to numerous individuals and groups for bringing us to our current position, poised to increase our efforts and spearhead the decarbonisation of marine transportation.
Our Early Investors (Friends and Family)
We are immensely thankful to all those who had faith in us from the start. We would also like to pay tribute to the late OV Babu, my brother-in-law, whose influence motivated me to pursue a career in ships and shipping. We extend our gratitude to Jithesh KA, Vidyanand Murunnikara, Hrishikesh Unni, Amita Unni, Mihin Shah, Dhananjay Sandu, Yashodharan Sandu, Niraj Gunde, and Abhishek Kumar Choudhary for their constant support and belief in our mission.
Our Mentors and Advisors
My heartfelt gratitude goes out to the late Madan L Kochhar, DS Lal, KK Devanandan, VK Mathews, and Raveendranath Kamath for their invaluable guidance. Your unwavering intellectual and financial support during our time of need is greatly appreciated. I would also like to extend a special thanks to Vedam and Akshay Jain.
The financial institutions that we have collaborated with.
Without the trust and backing of our bankers, specifically HDFC, SBI, PNB, KFC, SIDBI, and KSIDC, we would not have been able to take on projects larger than our previous year’s turnover. Your support was crucial in allowing us to achieve significant growth. During the initial stages of our journey, Poonawalla Fincorp, IDFC First Bank, and ICICI Bank played a critical role in maintaining our momentum. We would also like to extend a special thanks to KSUM and the Shell Foundation for their generous grant support.
Our Partners and Vendors
We extend our gratitude to Alten, EVE, and our various vendors for their valuable contributions in the co-development of solar electric boats, propulsion systems, and ship performance analysis tools.
Our Journey
Our journey started off as a design consultancy, delving into various projects including solar-powered cruise boats and retrofitting solar panels onto fishing boats. It was during this exploration that we introduced Aditya, the pioneering solar ferry in India, which ultimately established the Navalt brand.
Now, eight years have passed and we can proudly say that 35 of our solar electric boats are actively running in nine different Indian states.
During the first decade, efforts were focused on establishing the solar electric boat market. I also took advantage of the COVID pandemic to author a book that guides decision-makers in opting for solar-electric options instead of relying on petrol and diesel.
Currently, we are on the cusp of a significant expansion. In fact, within this year alone, we will surpass our boat delivery numbers from the previous decade by entering into four new countries.
Our esteemed customers
We extend our gratitude to the visionary clients who joined us on this journey. It is truly admirable to have faith in the potential of solar-powered ferry boats. Thank you, MSC, for entrusting us with Oceanix’s ship performance analytics. We are grateful to Master Shipyard for entrusting us with our debut design project. I would like to commend LRAJ for their support of the Greenship initiative.
With a global reach, Navalt has attracted numerous clients from all corners of the world.
Our Team
To all members of our team, regardless of your length of service, your involvement in our journey has greatly influenced Navalt’s development. Your contributions are immensely valued.
Banyan Tree, our institutional investor
Lastly, I would like to acknowledge our latest investors, Banyan Tree, who share our vision of electrifying the oceans and expediting the shift towards sustainable energy in the maritime industry.
It began with a message from Sonakshi Agarwal, whose affiliation with Popular Motors immediately caught our attention. This initial contact sparked in-depth conversations and significant interactions with the Banyan Tree team including Sanjiv Singhal, Rakesh Bhutoria, Ashish Agarwal, Avinash Samala, and once again, Sonakshi Agarwal.
We were fortunate to have the support of a fantastic group of partners throughout the process.
- Vivek CS, Girish J
What comes next
Following this investment, Navalt has successfully unified all of its activities into one consolidated group. This includes ship design, ship performance analytics (Oceanix), solar electric propulsion systems (Greenship), and solar electric boat manufacturing.
We anticipated the combination of shipbuilding, storage technology, and performance analysis for bigger vessels to happen in ten years, but we’re making progress towards it earlier than expected.
Our current trajectory is leading us towards our goal of becoming the top marine technology company, spearheading the electrification of marine transportation worldwide.
