USA’s First 100% Electric Greenline 39 Delivered — Governor’s Citation, Annapolis
Annapolis, Maryland — July 29, 2020. Greenline Yachts was presented with a Governor’s Citation by the State of Maryland, honoring the delivery of the first 100% electric Greenline yacht to be delivered in the United States. The citation — presented by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the Maryland Department of Commerce, and the Maryland Governor’s Office — marked a genuine milestone: zero-emission electric propulsion in a production motor yacht, delivered to an owner in the nation’s capital.
The Vessel
The Greenline 39 at the center of the delivery is powered by a Torqeedo 50 kW Deep Blue inboard motor and two Deep Blue 40 kWh lithium-ion batteries with BMW battery technology — giving it genuine electric-only range for the kind of weekend and coastal cruising that defines most owners’ actual use patterns.
Greenline had announced in 2019 that 100% electric propulsion systems by Torqeedo would be offered across their fleet. This delivery was the first North American proof point — not a prototype, not a custom build, but a production vessel delivered to a private owner through YSI’s Annapolis office.
The Delivery
After a week of preparation and sea trials in Annapolis, the team delivered the vessel to its owner at Fort Washington, then made the journey together on the Potomac River to Capital Harbor in Washington, D.C.
Brewster Knott of YSI’s Annapolis team described the passage: “We cruised around 6 knots the entire way and consumed less than 20% of the battery. Phenomenal.”
The Potomac passage — approximately 15 miles from Fort Washington to Capital Harbor — demonstrated exactly the use case that makes all-electric propulsion compelling for this market: a quiet, zero-emission cruise at displacement speeds in protected waters, arriving with the majority of the battery bank intact.
The Governor’s Citation
The citation was presented by Secretary Haddaway-Riccio (Maryland Department of Natural Resources), Secretary Schulz (Maryland Department of Commerce), Wendy Foster (Maryland Environmental Trust), and Bridgette Lundfelt (Governor’s Office of Community Initiatives). Representatives from Greenline USA, Yacht Sales International, and Torqeedo received the citation aboard the vessel during pre-delivery sea trials in Annapolis harbor.
Captain Todd Sims, representing Torqeedo at the event, noted: “Electric propulsion just makes sense for most owners who use their boats on the weekend, cruising around with family and friends. The ease, silence and simplicity of an electric-powered boat makes spending time on the water even more enjoyable. The fact that it’s ecologically and climate-friendly is almost just a bonus.”
What This Milestone Meant
In 2020, all-electric propulsion in a 39-foot motor yacht was still a new proposition in the U.S. market. The Chesapeake Bay and Potomac River — the delivery’s home waters — are exactly the environment where electric propulsion works best: protected, relatively short passages, weekend use patterns, and an owner community that genuinely values silent, clean operation.
YSI’s position as the delivery dealer reflected a commitment to the electric and hybrid segment that had been building since the company’s earliest Greenline dealership — and that has continued to develop since. In 2025, YSI delivered the first 100% electric Greenline 40 in North America — the next milestone in the same trajectory, now powered by Ingenity Electric’s twin-motor mCrate system with 189kWh of battery capacity.
To understand how electric propulsion has evolved since the 2020 Greenline 39 delivery, see our guide to how Greenline’s hybrid and electric systems work — and our post on why silent anchoring changes the ownership experience.
About Torqeedo
Torqeedo is the market leader for electric mobility on the water, founded in 2005 in Starnberg, Germany. The company develops and manufactures electric and hybrid drives from 0.5 to 100 kW for commercial and recreational applications. Torqeedo is part of the DEUTZ Group. Learn more at torqeedo.com.
Explore current Greenline electric and hybrid inventory — or contact YSI’s Annapolis team to discuss electric Greenline options for Chesapeake Bay cruising.