Western Norway News

The Northern Lights carbon capture and storage JV in Norway is increasing CO2 shipping capacity with its third LCO2 carrier. Like the first two vessels, the gas equipment specialist Svanehøj will supply the cargo pump system. "The three ships are the world's largest of their kind, and the order represents a significant milestone for Svanehøj's ambitions in Carbon Capture and Storage," Svanehøj said.In 2022, the Danish gas equipment specialist was chosen as the cargo pump supplier for the first two Northern Lights LCO2 carriers.

Montrose Port Authority says the port is set to become the first Scottish port to provide shore power infrastructure to the energy sector.To enable shore power to offshore energy industry vessels, the port has partnered with with Plug Shore Power Ltd in a 50/50 joint venture. The partnership will see an initial investment of £1 million into the joint venture which will be named Plug Montrose Ltd."Global shipping accounted for 833 million tonnes of CO2 in 2021. Currently only two British ports are equipped with shore power.

Equinor's Johan Castberg floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel suffered only minor damage during a fire on Wednesday, and the project's timeline will not be affected, a company spokesperson said on Thursday.The vessel is under construction at a shipyard in western Norway. Workers were evacuated during the fire, and there were no reports of injuries. "With the exception of a small area, which is still closed-off, work on the project continues as normal," Equinor…

The Danish marine pumps specialist Svanehøj will supply pump systems for two CO2 carriers that will transport liquid CO2 to the Northern Lights storage facilities in Norway.Northern Lights, the JV owned by Equinior, Shell, and TotalEnergies, is developing infrastructure to transport CO2 from industrial emitters in Norway and other European countries by ship to a receiving terminal in western Norway for intermediate storage, before being transported by pipeline for permanent storage in a geological reservoir 2…

Northern Xplorer AS (NX) announced itszero-emission, luxury cruise concept, designed to feature 'clean' technologies including fully electric propulsion, battery energy storage, hydrogen fuel cells and auxiliary renewable energy supply (wind and solar power). Northern Xplorer will provide opportunities to travel ‘off the beaten track’, connecting passengers with unique locations in the Nordic countries in a personal way,” said Rolf André Sandvik, the company's founder and CEO. Sandvik is a master mariner with extensive experience with cruise lines NCL and Crystal Cruises.

Chinese shipbuilder Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co. has won a contract to build two CO2 carriers for Northern Lights, a Norwegian carbon capture and storage project.Under the contract awarded by the Northern Lights JV, owned equally by Equinor, Shell and TotalEnergies, the Chinese shipbuilder will build two CO2 carriers, each with a cargo size of 7,500 m3 and a length of 130 meters.The two vessels, designed to transport liquid CO2 with purpose-built pressurized cargo tanks, are expected to be ready for delivery by mid-2024. The primary fuel for the ships will be LNG, keeping emissions low.

Norway's Kongsberg Maritime has won a deal with VARD shipyard to supply a large package of permanent magnet (PM) thrusters for installation on two new offshore wind farm maintenance vessels ordered by REM Offshore. The scope of delivery for the two Construction Service Operations Vessels (CSOV) includes PM azimuth thrusters, together with PM tunnel thrusters and a retractable azimuth thruster. PM thrusters differ from conventional thrusters in that the propeller blades are not driven directly with a motor and shaft.

Auxiliary wind propulsion systems provide Norsepower said it installed the world’s first tiltable Rotor Sails for SEA-CARGO, a logistics provider in the North Sea market.According the analysis conducted by Norsepower and SEA-CARGO, installation of the two 35-meter tall Rotor Sails on board the SC Connector, a 12,251 gross tonne (GT) sidedoor RoRo vessel, can achieve a fuel consumption, fuel cost and carbon emissions reduction of up to 25%. In good wind conditions, the sailing…

Turkish shipbuilder Cemre said it has signed a contract with Seistar Holding to build two environmentally friendly live fish carriers.Developed by the Norwegian SALT Ship Design, the newbuilds will be equipped with circular fish tanks. The 69.9- and 110-meter-long vessels will be built according to the DNV GL class rules and will carry the Norwegian flag.The larger of the two vessels, with a total of 8,000 cubic meters load capacity in the fish holds and deadweight of approximately 12…

Norwegian firm Endúr said this week its subsidiary BMO Entreprenør has won a large ferry quay contract with Vestland county in Western Norway. The contract has a value of NOK 40 million (USD 4.44 million).Endúr, a company with activities within aquaculture, marine infrastructure, maritime services and energy, announced the acquisition of BMO Entreprenør in October. The company is a provider of maintenance and rehabilitation services for marine infrastructure projects in Norway. The company has now signed a ferry quay contract with Vestland county.

The sustainable energy solutions provider Vestas Wind Systems A/S has received a 34 MW order for the Haramsfjellet wind project on the island of Haramsøya in western Norway.The Danish manufacturer has developed a solution to fit the site’s wind conditions that includes eight V136-4.2 MW turbines and a long-term service contract to optimise energy production for the lifetime of the project in a high wind location."With a robust design for tough wind sites, the turbine is well-suited for the challenging climatic conditions that are commonly found on Norway’s western coastline," said a press release.The order is placed by Finnish-based Taaleri Energia investing via their SolarWind II fund in the project that will have an annual production of about 112 GWh…

Damen Marine Components (DMC), the manufacturer of rudder and steering systems, nozzles, winches and controls, said that it has won a contract to supply a steering system for the trawler Cape Arkona.Currently in build at the Baatbygg yard at Måløy in western Norway for Austral Fisheries, the 1,150m³ vessel is capable of alternating between operating as a freezer trawler, long liner and a potter vessel, all within the period of a single trip.According to a press note, DMC will be supplying the 70-metre vessel with a Van der Velden TIMON flap rudder with heal bearing and a Van der Velden COMMANDER rotary vane steering gear.The slim-profile TIMON flap rudder is a popular and proven system which delivers superior maneuvering and course-keeping performance compared to conventional rudders.

While nothing lasts forever, the cruise industry – and particularly the ‘expedition’ cruise sector – remain on a historic run with no indication of a near-term slowdown.The leisure travel sector, of which expedition cruising is a part, offers numerous possibilities for delivering new “experiences” unlike industrial shipping businesses (or even conventional ferry and passenger transport), which can only grow as fast as the demand in a particular sector.Though there is no precise definition of “expedition”…

Norway on Jan. 1, 2026, will begin a ban on cruise ships powering through the Unesco-listed heritage fjords on anything but zero-emissions propulsion. For now, that means battery power, but few of the 190 cruise ship calls to these fjords are made with that kind of electro-chemical fuel on board. From now until 2026, you can still cruise the fjords on a closed-loop, or in-line, scrubber system, but few cruise ships have these installed. The new rules mean cruising elsewhere, finding…

Norway is growing its arsenal of military grade drones for missions that’ll take them into the exhaust streams of ship’s funnels. With the IMO now supporting the 0.1 percent sulfur cap on marine fuel from Jan. 2020, and with southern Norway below the 62nd parallel officially a European Emissions Control Area, or ECA, the Norwegian Maritime Authority, the NMA, is cracking down on illegal sulfur emissions.Oslo’s NMA and its domestic enforcement allies — the Norwegian Coast Guard (Kystvakten)…

Royal Norwegian Navy conducts an operation to partially raise the sunken vessel HNoMS Helge Ingstad, starting from February 26. The operation is estimated to take five to six days.The Norwegian frigate was involved in a collision with the oil tanker Sola TS just outside the coast northwest of Bergen in western Norway on November 8, 2018. Many operations have been made aiming to prevent the vessel from sinking.The operation has been delayed many times due to weather conditions. In order for the operation to be conducted safely, wind and waves must be calm for the duration of the operartion. "Forecasts indicate that the needed weather window occurs now – and the operation was initiated early morning Tuesday 26 February.

The Fjords will add another all electric passenger vessel to its fleet Legacy of The Fjords which is now under construction at Brødrene Aa. While the operator is certainly not new to the innovative, zero emission ferry market, this 400-passenger, carbon fiber catamaran is unique in that it marks the company’s move into a new operating area: Oslo.Currently The Fjords operates 11 vessels serving Western Norway’s fjords area, Vision of the Fjords and Future of the Fjords serving as the flagships, sailing daily between Flåm and Gudvangen.

Netherlands-based  global logistics company Samskip is restructuring the multi-purpose cargo and reefer services connecting North Sea and Baltic ports to Norway operated by subsidiary Nor Lines.A press release from the company stated: "The overhaul, effective from October 1st, 2018, will meet rising demand for reefer and project cargo services southbound and increase capacity for conventional and project cargoes northbound along the Norwegian coast and beyond to Murmansk. Two existing multi-purpose service loops increase to three."In the most obvious change, capacity on the three-ship Nor Lines service between Baltic ports and Norway will be expanded to four vessels, each with reefer/palletized and deck space, and 50mt heavy lift crane capacity.

Kongsberg Norcontrol has signed a framework agreement with the Norwegian Coastal Administration for delivery, operations and maintenance of radars to the maritime traffic service. The agreement has a potential total value of up to NOK 250 million and a duration of up to eleven years. This is amongst the largest framework agreements the Norwegian Coastal Administration has entered into with a single supplier. "The Ministry of Transport and Communications has assigned us to expand the service area for our maritime traffic service, and this framework agreement is an important step in achieving this. The agreement gives us access to modern radars with good performance," says Arve Dimmen, Director of Maritime Safety at the Norwegian Coastal Administration.

Earlier this summer Maritime Reporter & Engineering News ventured to Ålesund/Sunnmøre area of western Norway visiting local manufacturers and suppliers serving the global maritime industry and featuring a series of business and technology presentations by leading sector companies including Inmarsat, VARD Group, Ulstein Group, Brunvoll, Ulmatec, Jets, ABB Marine & Ports, Fostech AS and Rolls-Royce Marine. Tom Mulligan reports on new business developments and technology innovations…

Breaking new ground: the all-electric, zero-emissions Future of The FjordsNorwegian cruise vessel offers amazing tourist experience while protecting fragile UNESCO World Heritage environmentFuture of the Fjords, the world’s first all-electric and completely emissions-free ship, launched in April this year by Norwegian tours operator The Fjords, is now operating as a cruise vessel on the spectacular Gudvangen to Flåm route along the Nærøyfjord, Sognefjord and Aurlandsfjord of western Norway.

Corvus Energy, manufacturer of energy storage systems for maritime applications, announced two production and R&D expansion plans underway in Canada and Norway. The new battery factories will be more modern and more automated than other similar factories, result in eight times the production capacity compared to today.First, the Corvus Energy factory in the Vancouver, Canada region will be expanded and upgraded to house a 200 MWh semi-automated battery production facility. A new product R&D, design and engineering facility will also be developed.

A merger agreement between Bergen Group ASA and oil service company Endúr Fabricom will create an industrial group based in western Norway with close to 400 employees and an order book exceeding NOK 1 billion. The combined company will have considerable presence in both the oil and gas markets, in maritime service and towards the aquaculture industry.Hans Petter Eikeland, Chairman of the Board at Bergen Group ASA, states that the merger agreement has full support from the company's main shareholders…