Skype founder Niklas Zennstrom pioneers electric racing yacht

He founded Skype and is a key figurehead in the tech sector, but now Swedish billionaire Niklas Zennstrom is pioneering electric propulsion systems in racing yachts.

The 52-year-old is a long-time competitive sailor with a succession of boats named Ran, but his latest yacht is pushing the boundaries of technology with a greener, lighter and more efficient electric power unit.

Ran VII, the smallest of his yachts to date, is a stripped down 40-foot racer which will compete on the Fast40+ circuit. The revolutionary electric motor -- needed to maneuver out of berths, drive to the race course and for longer passages -- was the brainchild of Carkeek Design Partners, a Majorca-based yacht design business founded by South African Shaun Carkeek.

"Having gone through the design, build and initial test cycle there is no doubt to me that the future for racing yachts is electric propulsion. It's lighter, less drag, quieter, and most importantly it is environmentally friendly," said Zennstrom.

Ran VII will race on the Fast40+ circuit. 

The Swedish entrepreneur and his wife Catherine launched the Ran Racing team in 2008, since when it has won a host of the world's most prestigious regattas, including the Rolex Fastnet Race, the RORC  Caribbean 600, and the TP52 and Maxi72 World Championships.

But Zennstrom, who now runs technology investment firmAtomico, believes Ran VII is "the most radical" of his racing yachts.
"For sure, other companies have done electric propulsion systems but at this stage no one is doing what we've done in terms of optimization of the system into the performance side of the market. That's where this is pretty unique," Carkeek told CNN Sport.

(CNN)