We’re thrilled to announce a new chapter in Navalt’s journey. We’re deeply grateful to the many individuals and organisations who’ve helped us reach this milestone — as we now stand ready to scale and lead the charge in decarbonising marine transport.
Our Early Investors (Friends and Family)
Our journey began with belief – from people who backed us way before solar boats were in the market. We owe heartfelt thanks to those who stood by us from the start. A special tribute to the late OV Babu, whose influence sparked the very idea of entering the shipping world. Our deep gratitude goes out to Jithesh KA, Vidyanand Murunnikara, Hrishikesh Unni, Amita Unni, Mihin Shah, Dhananjay Sandu, Yashodharan Sandu, Niraj Gunde, and Abhishek Kumar Choudhary – your faith built the foundation of Navalt.
Our Mentors and Advisors
We’ve been fortunate to have the guidance of extraordinary individuals throughout our evolution. The late Madan L Kochhar, DS Lal, KK Devanandan, VK Mathews, and Raveendranath Kamath played pivotal roles – both intellectually and financially during trying times. Special thanks also to Vedam and Akshay Jain for their mentorship.
Our Financial Partners
Navalt’s ability to grow beyond our size, larger than our previous year’s turnover was made possible by the trust of our banking partners: HDFC, SBI, PNB, KFC, SIDBI, and KSIDC . Your support was crucial in enabling our growth.. In our early stages, we also received vital support from Poonawalla Fincorp, IDFC First Bank, and ICICI Bank. We deeply appreciate the critical grant support from KSUM and the Shell Foundation, which helped us sustain our vision.
Our Partners and Vendors
We owe much of our technological progress to our collaborators. Special thanks to Alten, EVE, and our vendor network who co-developed our solar electric boats, propulsion systems, and performance analytics tools.
Our Journey So Far
Navalt started as a ship design consultancy. Early experiments with solar-powered cruise boats and retrofitted fishing boats led to the creation of Aditya, India’s first solar ferry — and the birth of our brand.
Fast forward eight years, and we now have 35 solar electric boats operating across nine Indian states. The first decade was focused on creating the market for solar marine transport. During COVID, we even published a book aimed at helping decision-makers embrace solar-electric alternatives.
Now, in 2025, we stand on the threshold of exponential growth. This year alone, we are set to deliver more boats than in the last ten years combined, reaching four new countries in the process.
Our Clients
None of this would be possible without our visionary clients:
SWTD, for taking the leap with India’s first solar ferries
MSC, for choosing Oceanix ship performance analytics
Master Shipyard, for our very first design contract
LRAJ, for supporting the Greenship propulsion initiative
And many others worldwide who have made Navalt their choice for sustainable marine solutions.
Our Team
To every member of the Navalt family – past and present,thank you. Your passion, resilience, and commitment have built this company from the ground up. Each of you has left a mark on our story.
A Warm Welcome to BanyanTree Private Equity
Our newest institutional investor, Banyan Tree, has joined us with full alignment on our vision: to electrify the oceans and accelerate maritime decarbonization.
This relationship began with a message from Sonakshi Agarwal, whose introduction as a backer of Popular Motors became the opening chapter of a promising partnership. Since then, we’ve had the privilege of engaging with the brilliant BanyanTree team – Sanjiv Singhal, Rakesh Bhutoria, Ashish Agarwal, Avinash Samala, and Sonakshi Agarwal.
This phase of growth was also made smoother by the dedicated efforts of our partners:
Finlead: Tony Sajan, Saranya S Pai, Sangheetha Prakasan
JSA Law: Archana Tewary, Savio Tom
EY: Mithun DSouza, Nitheesh P
Vivek CS, Girish J
CAM: Suvojit Halder, Shruthi Ashok, Rahi Dhuvad
What’s Next for Navalt
Following the investment, Navalt has now consolidated its operations into a single unified group, bringing together:
Ship design
Ship performance analytics (Oceanix)
Solar electric propulsion systems (Greenship)
Boat manufacturing
This integration — which we once expected to achieve in the 2030s — is happening now. The convergence of vessel manufacturing, energy storage systems, and data-driven analytics is no longer a future ambition; it’s our present strategy.
Navalt is now accelerating towards its ultimate mission:
To become the world’s foremost marine technology company, championing the electrification of marine transport.
