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The story behind Germany`s successful e-yacht brand.

ALVA Yachts opens its doors!

ALVA Yachts, the innovative manufacturer of luxury solar power yachts, has reached its next product and company development stage. Our customers and industry colleagues want to know more about where we started and who is behind ALVA Yachts.

The company was originally called Pica Yachts. Pica Yachts started in 2013 and made 20-30ft sailing and electric powerboats. They were a successful German yacht manufacturer that made around 50 vessels from 2013-2019. The person in control was Holger Henn, a 25-year maritime production veteran, who has a great reputation in the market as a specialist in yacht production processes and design.

Henn met Mathias May at the Singapore Yacht Show in 2018, where over a drink after a busy day walking the pontoons, they decided the market lacked innovative products and saw a gap in the market for a luxury solar-powered catamaran. Mathias May who previously worked for Silent Yachts as head of business development was passionate about creating a new luxury electric yacht of high quality and with Superyacht quality fit and finish. The two men agreed, and thus ALVA Yachts was born.

Holger Henn is also a very respected German designer and has overseen Henn Design for over 20 years. Having worked on large projects of Superyacht size vessels in the past, Holger was perfectly placed to take the ALVA project on board. Holger and Mathias reunited on a cold winter's weekend in February 2019 to work on the now famous design of the ALVA Ocean ECO 60 and Ocean ECO 90. Together, their sons Milan Henn (head of ALVA design) and Ajun May (ALVA project manager) were supporting. The company was rebranded as ALVA Yachts in early 2020.

The stunning contemporary design, the best-in-class beam, and innovative interior layout were an immediate hit. “The ALVA Yacht design took the market by storm and the sheer level of interest has just been tremendous”, said Mathias May. The first order quickly followed, and with that ALVA Yachts was only getting started.

In early 2021, Dennis de Roos joined the ALVA business as Interim Commercial Director to support the global commercial strategy and execution. Dennis is now responsible for global sales and dealer development. ALVA Yachts has a strong global dealer network with representation in North America, Europe, Russia, and the Middle East. The next step is to form dealer partnerships in South America and ASIA.

Since then, ALVA Yachts has secured its place in the marine industry offering sustainable and innovative luxury electric yachts and products. It now has a luxury electric 50ft monohull (Ocean Cruise 50), three luxury electric catamarans (Ocean ECO 54, 60, and 90), and two fabulous electric sailing yachts (Ocean Sail 72 and 82).

Although we are passionate about electric solar power yachts, our hearts equally lie in sailing as the management team all have experience of spending time sailing the oceans. ALVA Yachts has confirmed its entry in the famous Vendee Globe race with the newly developed ALVA IMOCA 60 at the 2024 Vendee Globe race to celebrate our enthusiasm for sailing.

Many of you might not know that ALVA has a second range of innovative products, as well. ALVA manufactures fully self-sufficient floating homes using the ethos of sustainability and luxury solar-powered living on the water. The market is both domestic and resort-oriented. ALVA is currently working on sustainable luxury housing projects in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe.

ALVA Yachts recently invested in having its stand at key international yacht shows in Cannes and Fort Lauderdale. The aim was to show our stunning yachts and support sustainable boating for future generations. “What we weren’t prepared for was the overwhelming amount of interest in the ALVA Yachts and a strong number of new orders”, said Dennis de Roos.

The ALVA Yachts business is in a very stable position. With orders well into 2023 for all our yacht models, and an extensive list of prospective buyers from all corners of the world. The ALVA shipyard in Antalya, Turkey, is at full capacity with the Ocean ECO 54, 60, and 90 in production. “We are now looking at more production capacity to meet our customers' increasing demand”, said Holger Henn.

The future is looking very bright for ALVA Yachts. The next steps are fulfilling our ongoing production schedule and keep innovating. Our research and development department is very busy with fuel cell technologies, which will likely be the next step in sustainability. Furthermore, we are seeing increasing demand in the 100-120ft solar electric Superyacht market. An opportunity we are looking forward to exploring!

ALVA Yachts is proud to be an innovative leader in the solar-powered luxury yacht market with a range of yachts between 50-90ft. The ALVA head office is in Bad Pyrmont, and the ALVA design office is in Berlin, Germany. The main production facility is in Antalya, Turkey.

For more information contact:
Milan Henn (head of marketing) m.henn@alva-yachts.com