AMPD Ventures (AMPD.C) sets sail with Unleash Future Boats

Laying the Groundwork

$12.657M Market Capitalization

AMPD Ventures Inc. (AMPD.C) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary, AMPD Technologies Inc., has entered into a binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Unleash Future Boats GmbH, a Germany-based company. The MOU is comprised of a CAD$1.8 million in revenue to AMPD as part of an anticipated broader collaborative relationship between the two companies.

“We are very pleased to enter into a formal relationship with our Canadian partners, AMPD Technologies, and their extremely impressive, high-performance computing capabilities,” said Lars Engelhard, Founder and CEO of Unleash Future Boats.

Put simply, an MOU outlines each party’s intention to take action, conduct a business transaction, or, in this case, form a new partnership. With this in mind, as you probably could have guessed from the headline, Unleash Future Boats (UFB) is a company developing “transport systems for mobility and logistics on the water.” However, UFB develops sustainable solutions via fuel cells and green hydrogen.

Today’s Idea: can we depend on a hydrogen fueled future?

UFB is credited for developing Zero One, the world’s first fully autonomous ship with international registration and global insurance. Furthermore, the company’s Zero One emits zero emissions thanks to an electric motor and fuel cell, which is powered by green hydrogen. With this in mind, Zero One serves as the foundation for the company’s planned innovations, including Future One and Cargo One.

UFB’s Future One is intended to function as a fully electric and autonomous boat, allowing people to cross the water quickly. Additionally, Future One will feature support for eBikes, which are wildly popular in Germany, allowing passengers to charge their bikes on board during a trip. On the contrary, UFB’s Cargo One is advertised as a “truck on the water.”

Sized at approximately 55 feet, or 17 meters, the Cargo One will be capable of transporting 40-foot containers over the water. Furthermore, Cargo One’s “swarm mode” will allow it to function as a fleet on the water, enabling large quantities of goods to be transported via waterways, similar to a train. Bearing all of this in mind, innovation is UFB’s middle name.

As a result, the company was awarded the Regulatory Sandbox Innovations Award by the Federal Republic of Germany. To summarize, the Federal Republic of Germany’s regulatory sandbox strategy is intended to foster digital innovation and develop the regulatory framework. For a closer look at regulatory sandboxes, check out the official article here.

A Helping Hand

Getting back to the latest news, according to the MOU, AMPD will develop and manufacture 4 Computing Containers, which will then be shipped to Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. Once there, UFB will use the Company’s Computing Containers to commence Proof of Concept trials on a government-approved 42-kilometer (km) test at Schlei for autonomous ships.

“Having the opportunity to architect and build the next generation of digital infrastructure for maritime traffic, that will support zero-emissions watercraft, is very exciting. Lars and his team in Germany have developed first-class expertise in autonomous vehicle technology and we are looking forward to building out this solution that will have global implications together,” said Anthony Brown, CEO of AMPD.

For context, Schlei refers to a narrow inlet located in Schleswig-Holstein stretching approximately 20 km. With this in mind, the signing of a definitive agreement between AMPD and UFB is contingent upon the successful awarding of funds from the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transportation. The funds are related to a previously submitted funding grant to develop the Digital Port Schleswig-Holstein.

This grant is expected for the fourth quarter of 2022. If successful, this will provide AMPD with a foothold in the global autonomous ships market, which was valued at USD$5.8 billion in 2020. This market is projected to more than double to USD$14.2 billion by 2030, expanding at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.3% from 2020 to 2030.