V.Ships Manages REV Ocean Expedition Ship
Norwegian ocean research organization REV Ocean has appointed V.Ships Leisure as ship management partner for the world’s largest research and expedition vessel.
V.Ships Leisure, part of V.Group, will provide a tailored suite of ship management services for the new vessel, which is scheduled for completion in 2021. The ship will be equipped for conducting research that covering the whole of the marine ecosystem using advanced technology developed by Norwegian knowledge clusters and will be used for innovative research expeditions exploring issues such as the impact that carbon dioxide emissions have on the oceans, plastic pollution, protection of endangered species and sustainable fishing. The REV Ocean vessel will run on diesel electric engines, with an additional 3MW lithium-ion battery pack for peak shaving and ensuring optimum efficiency. Following its first sea launch in Tulcea, Romania on 23 August, the ship is now on its way to the Brattvåg shipyard on the west coast of Norway for more construction work.
Per Bjornsen, Director of V.Ships Leisure, commented: “While the maritime industry endeavors to reduce carbon emissions across its global fleet, it’s also imperative that we continue look at the whole picture, both inside and outside of our industry, if we are to build towards a better and more sustainable future. With this in mind, we have made it our goal at V.Group to go beyond helping our customers to meet regulation, to leading the fight for cleaner shipping. This exciting new partnership with REV Ocean will allow us to leverage V.Group’s unique range of expertise and experience, and our powerful digital ship management platform ShipSure, to contribute to vital scientific research and maximize positive impact on a vessel that demonstrates the cutting edge in green ship technology.”
Dag Christoffersen, Managing Director of V.Ships Nordic Cluster, added: “REV Ocean’s decision to build the biggest vessel of its kind in the world, featuring the world’s most advanced technology and scientific equipment, necessitates ship management support from a partner with unmatched capacity to deliver. In addition to V.Group’s global reach, REV Ocean will benefit from the local expertise of our Norway office, which has strong ties with the Kjell Inge Røkke group of companies, and extensive knowledge of working within the guidelines set out by the Norwegian Maritime Authority.”
An independent scientific committee will evaluate and recommend research projects for REV Ocean to pursue. The vessel has the capacity to take 60 scientists and 30 crew on board, and features state-of-the-art echo sounders and sonars to study fish and other marine species, an advanced eco-harvesting system for live catch and release of biomass and pelagic samples, and multiple on-board laboratories.