A new company on Nova Scotia’s South Shore is setting out to electrify transportation on the water.

Based in Pleasantville, Templar Marine will produce a range of fully electric boats — from commercial craft and tour boats to water taxis — all completely emissions-free. The vessels are approved by both the U.S. Coast Guard and Transport Canada.

“We’ve seen what’s happened with electric cars and how quickly that market has grown,” said CEO Topher Kingsley-Williams in an interview last week. “As people who spend a lot of time on the water, we see no reason why electricity shouldn’t be more widely adopted in the marine sector.”

Templar Marine’s origins date back to 2017 in Kelowna, B.C., where entrepreneurs Mark and Jennifer Fry began designing their own electric boats after failing to find models that met their needs. Their company gained early traction but was forced to pause operations during the pandemic.

Recently, Kingsley-Williams and his father, Steven Williams, a naval architect, learned about the company and decided to make an offer for it. Kingsley-Williams is a serial entrepreneur whose previous venture, Moncton-based Porpoise, helped businesses collaborate with their employees on charitable initiatives. The pair purchased Templar Marine last month, loaded the assets into a truck, and moved operations to Nova Scotia.

“Our intention was to move everything to Nova Scotia, where there’s a rich boatbuilding tradition,” said Kingsley-Williams. “We want to use this [venture] as a platform to explore electrification across the entire marine industry.”

Templar’s website currently lists three models on offer: the Picnic 20, a simple pleasure craft; the Cruiser 26, a cabin-equipped cruising boat; and the Water Taxi T26. A fourth model, the Sedan 26, similar to the Cruiser but powered by lithium-iron-phosphate batteries, is coming soon.

Two demonstration boats are already on display in Pleasantville, and the company plans to begin production later this year or in early 2026 at Snyder’s Shipyard in Bridgewater.

Templar Marine is now building interest among potential customers, including operators exploring a water taxi service for Halifax Harbour and the Northwest Arm — an initiative that could help reduce traffic congestion on the peninsula.

Kingsley-Williams said the company has raised some capital already and hopes to raise more in order to have sufficient working capital. In addition to building boats, Templar is investing in R&D focused on electric drivetrains.

“One thing we’re exploring is how our drivetrain system can be retrofitted into existing workboats and fishing fleets in Atlantic Canada,” said Kingsley-Williams. “The real innovation we’ve developed lies in the drivetrain and the batteries.”