The new Leopard 46 catamaran has just been unveiled at Cannes. This new version of this South African catamaran, with its particularly meticulous design and construction, comes with a host of new features, one of which is a hybrid propulsion system!

Leopard catamarans benefit from the proximity of its product teams to those of charter operators Moorings and Sunsail. In practice, this proximity has led to a flow of continuous improvement through design elements, but also through the installation of specific ‘charter proof’ equipment.

We'll be coming back to these exciting (for me at least!) subjects in more detail in a forthcoming article.

So the Leopard 46 is particularly well born. This new model takes on some of the features of the Leopard 45, such as the front door and the large flybridge, but adds several new ingredients.

The images from the shipyard show a catamaran with a long, slightly angular coachroof, which, along with the long hull glazing and its characteristic shape, makes it easy to recognise this boat without any possible confusion.

The photos also reveal a move upmarket in the materials used, which is appropriate for catamarans of this size, which can have between 3 and 5 cabins with en suite facilities. The uncomfortable forward crew cabins have finally been replaced by a double cabin in the middle of the starboard float.

The cockpit has been fitted with a three-panel sliding door that opens up the passageway to the galley and saloon.

The other major new feature on the Leopard 46 is the option of a hybrid engine - a series hybrid, to be exact - based on two 25 kW pods powered by two banks of 27 kWh batteries recharged by a powerful 24 kW generator, 2,800 Wp of solar panels and the shore charger, while relying (a little) on hydrogen generation when under sail.

An engine (at €200k) straight out of Fountaine-Pajot, it's the one installed on the group's hybrids, and it allows the boat to travel for a few hours on 100% electric power and for hundreds of hours with the crew under way, benefiting from much improved fuel consumption compared with a diesel catamaran.

The Leopard 46 will be presented at the La Grande Motte Multihull Boat Show in April 2025.