# About the Economics category

**URL:** <https://solarboats.discourse.group/t/about-the-economics-category/9>\
**Category:** Economics\
**Created:** [October 14, 2026, 6:06pm UTC](https://solarboats.discourse.group/t/about-the-economics-category/9 "2026-10-14T18:06:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Sandith](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex042/user_avatar/solarboats.discourse.group/sandith/32/11_2.png) [@Sandith](https://solarboats.discourse.group/u/Sandith)\
**Post date:** [October 14, 2026, 6:06pm UTC](https://solarboats.discourse.group/t/about-the-economics-category/9/1 "2026-10-14T18:06:09Z")

</div>

Is it worth it? Costs, savings, financing and subsidies for electric and solar boats, and how they compare with diesel in real service.

**What belongs here**

- Total cost of ownership (TCO) and NPV: electric vs diesel
- Purchase costs: hull, powertrain, battery, solar
- Running costs: electricity vs fuel, maintenance, crew, battery replacement
- Financing, subsidies, government schemes, green funding
- Revenue: ticket pricing, occupancy, route planning, timetables
- **Real operating data.** Actual daily energy use, fuel saved and maintenance after a year in service are among the most valuable things anyone can share.
- Emissions and carbon accounting

**What goes elsewhere**

- Technical sizing of batteries and solar → _Energy_
- How much power the boat needs → _Resistance & Propulsion_

**When asking a question, include:** vessel type, daily route and operating days per year, your fuel and electricity prices, and the currency. Prices vary a lot between countries, so say where you are.

**Sharing numbers:** round them or leave out what’s commercially sensitive. Even rough figures (“battery about 30% of boat cost”, “electricity costs a fifth of the diesel”) help others.