Norwegian Coast News

Bergen Tankers and Equinor have signed a long-term charter agreement for two oil/chemical tanker newbuilds with an electric propulsion system, which aim to set a new standard for low emissions at the Norwegian Coast.The Norway-based companies selected Berg Propulsion as the system integrator for these DNV ice-classed tankers. The newbuild 6,500 dwt stainless steel tankers will be built by Zhoushan Dashenzhou Shipbuilding in China.The vessels will include two electric drive controllable…

An agreement between Höegh Autoliners and green industry pioneer Nordic Circles launches a national project that will change the handling of decommissioned ships. Using Norwegian technology, labor, and industry, old ships will be upcycled in Norway into certified building materials—without melting, without export, and with up to 97% lower emissions.Nordic Circles and Höegh Autoliners are announcing the agreement on the Blue Talks stage at Nor-Shipping, in front of maritime leaders from around the world…

The EU granted $8.1 million to the STEESMAT project, which aims to develop a new power distribution systems for the zero-emission ships of the future.Spearheaded by Maritime CleanTech, 13 partners will collaborate on the development of an innovative power distribution system tailored to the needs of tomorrow’s emission-free vessels. This tech is aiming to simplify the integration of modern green energy sources while optimizing the efficiency of existing solutions. “The Norwegian maritime industry is a global leader in green solutions…

Canada and Norway have signed a deal to expand cooperation between the two allied nations' coast guards, in a move to boost marine safety and environmental protection in high latitudes.The Canadian Coast Guard this week announced it has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with the Norwegian Coast Guard "formalizing joint efforts in data analysis, education and training, decarbonization, and Arctic scientific research, and setting the stage for enhanced capabilities in marine security…

A replica Viking ship has berthed in Montenegro's Adriatic port of Bar on a years-long trip through European waters inspired by the Norse seafarers who set out from Scandinavia to explore, trade and conquer a millennium ago.The ship, Saga Farmann, is a full-size archaeological reconstruction of a 10th-century Viking cargo vessel, or knarr, made from oak and pine, which was found in Norway as early as 1893 but only excavated in the 1970s."This is the type of ship that would travel to Iceland…

Equinor, on behalf of the partners, is exercising two options to extend contracts with Archer AS, KCA Deutag Drilling Norway AS and Odfjell Operations AS for a total of four years.The options for drilling services on fixed installations on the Norwegian continental shelf provide jobs for 2,000 people per year and have an estimated value of NOK 18.4 billion.The contracts were signed in 2018 with three option periods of two years. The first two-year option was exercised in 2022.

Hy2gen, the global developer, financier builder, owner and operator of renewable hydrogen and hydrogen-based e-fuels plants, and Amogy, the provider of ammonia power technology, today have signed an MoU to collaborate in the field of renewable ammonia.The agreement encompasses the pooling of resources to advance the use of renewable ammonia as a maritime fuel, participate in joint development projects and secure the safe usage of ammonia on board maritime vessels.Amogy’s ammonia-to-power solution aims to decarbonize the hard-to-abate sectors…

A Norwegian Navy ship shadowed a Chinese container ship investigated over damage to a gas pipeline in the Gulf of Finland for about 15 hours as it sailed along the western coast of Norway on Monday, vessel tracking data showed.Finnish investigators on Tuesday said they were looking into the Chinese vessel, the NewNew Polar Bear, and a Russian-flagged ship, the Sevmorput, as well as other vessels, present in the area when a Baltic Sea pipeline was damaged on Oct. 8.They said the incident was due to "outside activity" and could have been deliberate.The NewNew Polar Bear is a container ship travelling between Europe and China via the Northern Sea Route in the Arctic.

Norway's Kongsberg Maritime said Friday it had successfully demonstrated a range of remote and autonomous technologies on a cargo vessel operating off the coast of Norway.The test cruise has been named one of the most complex autonomous journeys at sea so far, Kongsberg Maritime said.The Eidsvaag Pioner is one of the two vessels that are equipped for remote-operated and autonomous transport demonstrations for the AUTOSHIP project, which is part of Horizon 2020, an EU research program.Owned by the Eidsvaag shipping company…

The Norwegian government is providing financial support for the construction of three cargo ships that will run emissions-free along the Norwegian coast.Enova, a Norwegian government enterprise promoting the use of clean energy, said it is providing NOK 130 million to Skarv Shipping Solutions AS for the acquisition of three cargo ships that will run on batteries, ammonia engines, rotor sails and energy-saving hull design. The vessels will potentially have a 90% reduction in emissions compared to similar traditional ships."Enova supports those who go ahead.

ABB said it has secured a contract with the Spanish state-owned Navantia shipbuilding company to retrofit the Spanish Navy flagship Juan Carlos I with an electrical propulsion system based on dual ABB Azipod units. Due completion in 2025, the project is the first of its kind on a naval ship.The contract follows a study undertaken by ABB in 2020 to determine the feasibility of installing new propulsors on the ship. The study identified ABB Azipod as a solution to meet the vessel’s requirements for reliability…

Norway said on Thursday it would impose limits on Russian fishing vessels using its ports, in a further tightening of security following last week's suspected sabotage on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the nearby Baltic Sea.Russian trawlers will now only be allowed to visit three of several dozen ports along the Norwegian coast and must undergo security checks when they do, foreign minister Anniken Huitfeldt told a news conference.She stopped short of imposing a total ban on Russian vessels demanded by some security experts and opposition politicians…

Hurtigruten Norway announced it has launched its first environmentally-upgraded battery-hybrid powered ship as part of a €100 million seven vessel refit program aimed at significantly reducing both CO2 and NOx emissions.MS Richard With has gone through extensive upgrades, having been retrofitted with two large battery packs (1,120kWh each) and new, more efficient Norwegian-made engines and new propulsion systems at Myklebust Yard in northwestern Norway. The vessel also received new switchboards and power management systems…

Hurtigruten Norwegian Coastal Express partners with SINTEF to create zero emission ships for the Norwegian coast by 2030.Since 1893, Hurtigruten Norwegian Coastal Express has carried local passengers, goods, and tourists between 34 ports. The company is currently upgrading its existing fleet through what is one of the biggest environmental upgrade programs of it's kind in Europe, that will see CO2-emissions cut by 25% and NOx by 80%. The company aims to be a leader in sustainable travel…

Norwegian offshore vessel owner Solstad Offshore has this week sold two anchor handling tug and supply vessels, in line with its objective to reduce fleet size to a level of 80-90 vesselsThrough its subsidiary Solstad Rederi AS, the company sold the AHTS Normand Master and Normand Mariner.The delivery of the vessels to the new owner took place on Thursday, and Solstad said the sale of the vessels would result in an immaterial accounting effect.Earlier this month, Solstad Offshore sold three anchor handling vessels…

Electromotor Glitch Delays Havila Voyages' Castor Vessel DeliveryNorwegian coastal cruise shipping company Havila Voyages said Thursday that the first trip with its Havila Castor newbuild vessel would be delayed due to a technical problem with its electric motor. Havila Polaris and Havila Pollux start-ups are also expected to experience delays."The [Havila Castor] ship, which was due to start operating on April 7, is being built at the Tersan shipyard in Turkey, where it is currently unable to carry out sea trials due to challenges with an electric motor…

Offshore vessel owner Solstad Offshore said Thursday it had sold three anchor handling vessels to undisclosed buyers, and also secured work for two platform supply vessels in the UK North Sea.Haugesund, Norway-based company said Thursday it had sold the Nor Captain  - owned by its subsidiary Solstad Offshore Singapore - and Far Sword and Far Stream, owned by its subsidiary Farstad Supply."Delivery of the vessels to the new owner took place today, February 3rd, 2022. The sale of the vessels will result in an immaterial accounting effect…

Norwegian cruise shipping company Havila Voyages said it has taken delivery of its first newbuild, Havila Capella.The 124-meter ship will soon begin sailing from Tersan Shipyard in Turkey toward the Norwegian coast ahead of its first sailings on the traditional coastal route from Bergen from December 1.Havila Voyages CEO, Bent Martini, said, "We are many who have waited a long time for this, and now the first ship is finally in our hands and we will start preparing for setting sail towards Norway."Mehmet Gazioğlu…

When MS Otto Sverdrup departed Hamburg, Germany, on itsmaiden voyage on August 24, Hurtigruten marked off three milestones: Introduction of Hurtigruten Expeditions’ third battery-hybrid powered cruise ship; Introduction of the first year-round expedition cruises from Germany; and a return of expedition cruises after more than a year of pandemic pause.Since the very first expedition cruise in 1896, Hurtigruten Expeditions has helped to define the expedition cruise category, with today a growing fleet of smaller…

Hurtigruten Group said green upgrades for its entire fleet of Hurtigruten Norwegian Coastal Express ships—including batteries, shore power and biofuel—will reduce CO2 emissions by least 25% and NOx emissions by 80% as the Norwegian passenger vessel operator continues its journey toward totally emissions-free vessel operations.Already fitted with shore-power connectivity to fully eliminate emissions when connected in port, the seven Hurtigruten Norwegian Coastal Express ships will be retrofitted with a combination of technologies and solutions specially adapted for each individual ship…

Who do you call when you need a job done on short notice, in total darkness, under 100-percent ice cover, thousands of meters at the bottom of the sea? In the case of the U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR), you call your friends in Norway.That is exactly what the Chief of Naval Research Rear Admiral Lorin C. Selby did when he enlisted the help of the Norwegian Coast Guard icebreaker and offshore patrol vessel, the CGV Svalbard, to retrieve oceanographic moorings containing irreplaceable data.

Kongsberg Maritime (KM) said it will supply an equipment and simulation package for the maritime training vessel MS Gann, helping both to reduce the vessel’s emissions and enhance the education offered on board. The contract, worth 41.2 million NOK, is part of an extensive refit and will include KONGSBERG’s SAVe Energy battery system and hybrid shaft generators, in addition to power management, propulsion control and monitoring systems.MS Gann – which ran passenger services along…

Norwegian cruise company Hurtigruten sustained a cyberattack earlier on Monday and several key systems are currently down, the company said in a statement.The company, which operates ferries along the Norwegian coast as well as cruises in the Arctic and Antarctic in normal times, said it did not expect the attack to lead to a “material financial effect”, it said.“This is a serious attack.