SWITCH Maritime is raising via SAFE with a $25 million valuation cap. For investors who contribute to the first $500,000, the valuation will be lowered to $20 million and the conversion will take place at a 25% discount to the company’s future value. Later investors in the deal will see this reduced to 20%. Based on the data here, SWITCH Maritime’s valuation cap looks awfully high. Because of this, our system rated the company’s price a bit below average on our one-to-five scale.

SWITCH Maritime’s market is twofold: the passenger ferry market and the hydrogen fuel cell market. The global passenger ferry market is on the small side. According to one source, the market was worth $2.5 billion in 2019. At an annualized growth rate of 3.4%, this should climb to $3.5 billion by 2029. A second source sees the industry rising from $2.8 billion in 2020 to around $4 billion by 2030, implying an annualized growth rate of 4.2%. The global hydrogen fuel cell market, on the other hand, is much larger. In 2019, that space was estimated to be worth $10.5 billion. Though this is not particularly large, the annualized growth rate through 2027 is pegged at 21.4%, which would take the industry up to $49.5 billion. Because of the hydrogen fuel cell market’s rapid growth and the global push to be more environmentally friendly, our system has rated SWITCH Maritime’s market opportunity comfortably above average.

At the helm of the SWITCH Maritime team is CEO and founder Pace Ralli. In addition to running SWITCH, Ralli serves as the co-founder and principal of MidOcean Wind, which is building US maritime vessels that are suited for constructing and supporting the offshore wind market. Ralli is also the co-founder and CEO of Clean Marine Energy, which is focused on building clean fueling infrastructure for the maritime shipping industry. It has supposedly made investments in LNG, hydrogen, and charging terminals throughout the US. In the past, Ralli worked as a principal at SCIenergy, a company focused on large energy efficiency projects in commercial buildings. Before that, he was a manager of natural gas transmission and distribution at Pacific Gas and Electric Company. 

SWITCH Maritime does have a CFO and other employees, but the fact that Ralli is the only founder creates additional risk for investors. In addition, his attention seems to be split between at least two other companies at this time. Being the CEO of one business is hard work, let alone three. Ralli’s multiple commitments might make investors question his dedication to SWITCH Maritime. Because of these factors, our system has rated the company’s team a bit below average.

SWITCH Maritime’s underlying technology, which involves the construction and leasing out of a ferry, is nothing new. What is unusual is its emphasis on powering its product with hydrogen fuel cells. This is not completely unheard of, though. Toyota created its own hydrogen-powered boat called the REXH2. Linde is powering the MF Hydra Ferry, a hydrogen-powered ferry in Norway. And DFDS is constructing a hydrogen-powered ferry called the Europa Seaways. That said, SWITCH Maritime is still clearly among the early adopters of these types of vehicles. Because of that, our system has rated the differentiation of the product well above average.

SWITCH Maritime is nearly finished constructing its first ship. Much of the funding for this came from a $3 million grant provided by the California Air Resources Board. The company has also managed to land multiple strategic partners, including Cummins and All American Marine. That said, the firm has yet to generate any revenue, and its historical financial statements are almost a blank slate. There are no costs associated with the development of the ship, nor any assets on its books. This raises a red flag that management is not adequately keeping its books. All of this combined has led our system to rate SWITCH Maritime’s performance well below average.

On the whole, SWITCH Maritime’s risk profile appears to be on the low end. Only one category of risk is elevated: funding risk. While it is entirely possible that SWITCH Maritime will capture the funding that it needs, it will likely have to come back multiple times in order to get enough capital to continue to grow its fleet. This picture might be different if the firm were involved in selling each ferry that it built. However, leasing them out means that management needs to raise significant capital for the construction and deployment of its vehicles while only bringing in a small, though steady, stream of income.

Though SWITCH Maritime’s risk profile is low, investors should note its current lack of funding. The valuation also seems too high. The team could be an issue because it is a single-founder company, and that founder does not seem as focused on SWITCH Maritime as he could be. The company has yet to generate revenue, and its bookkeeping appears inaccurate, at the very least.

SWITCH Maritime is an appealing prospect for investors who want to invest in clean energy solutions. The company’s industry opportunity looks generally promising. SWITCH Maritime has a clearly differentiated product and has managed to land important strategic partnerships since its inception. While there are risks with the team, its CEO has significant experience. Finally, if SWITCH Maritime’s environmentally friendly ferries succeed, the enterprise could influence the rest of the industry to follow its example.

SWITCH Maritime is tackling greenhouse gas emissions by building and leasing hydrogen-powered ferries. If successful, the company could benefit the environment as well as investors. SWITCH Maritime also has the advantage of decent market opportunity and a number of strategic partnerships. The CEO’s experience is also highly relevant. 

SWITCH also has its problems. The company is currently raising at a high valuation, and it seems to need help with funding due to its lack of revenue. The company’s bookkeeping appears to be inaccurate. In addition, it has the risk of a single founder who is also running at least two other businesses. Therefore, our team has decided to rate the company as a Neutral prospect.

For questions regarding the KingsCrowd staff pick or ratings for this company, please reach out to support@kingscrowd.com.

Analysis written by Daniel Jones.