Feature 3 | NORWAY Norwegian yards experts in their fields


With over 20 major shipyards working almost exclusively in the smaller specialised ship sector, Norway is a major force in the workboat market, writes Dag Pike in this special feature.


of relatively high costs compared with those in many parts of the world. Long gone are the days when vessel owners ordered from nearby yards, and today the market is fully international, with costs a very important factor. Norwegian yards also suffer from


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the handicap of severe winter weather conditions, but in some respects this has been turned into a benefit. Te severe conditions have required virtually all Norwegian yards to build construction halls that allow all work to be carried out undercover. The good working environment


this created has been to the benefit of building more sophisticated designs, and the focus of most of the yards is now towards the more complex and innovative type of construction. Tese specialised vessels include mainly offshore service craſt, fishing vessels, and ferries, with the offshore sector dominating the market.


Current construction Tere are five yards in the Aker Group that form part of Europe’s largest shipbuilding group, and a recent contract for these yards was for four very powerful anchor handling vessels with a bollard pull in excess of 300tonnes. However, only two of these vessels will


be built in Norway, with the remaining two at Aker Yards in Romania. Tis trend to add yards in low-cost countries is also being followed by Ulstein, and it reflects the need to reduce costs in what is a highly competitive market. Two more anchor handlers on order


with Aker, that are scheduled for delivery in 2010, will have their hulls built at the Romanian yard, but fitting- out will be carried out in Norway.


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orwegian yards have survived in what has been a difficult climate for orders, and in spite


An example of a UT 755 from Simek. Te yards in the Aker Group delivered


nine offshore vessels last year and the company currently has a strong order book. A contract has also just been received


by Aker Yards for a ground-breaking PSV design, to be fuelled by liquid natural gas (LNG). Tis vessel will be powered by dual fuel engines that can switch between diesel and LNG as fuels. Te design allows space for the LNG tanks without sacrificing space for revenue earning cargoes. Tese tenders are two daughter boats


and a Maritime Partners small tug, and they are launched and recovered by means of a stern slipway. Te tug is used to handle the oil boom equipment carried onboard. The vessel is also equipped for towing and has a helicop- ter deck in the bow, and fire-fighting equipment. The two major players in the


Norwegian building sector are the Aker and Ulstein Groups. Both of these companies also own yards in Eastern Europe where much of the steel fabrica-


tion is carried out, with the Norwegian yards tending to focus mainly on the fitting out of these hulls. However, as the yards in low-cost


countries gain skills to build more sophisticated vessels there has to be a question mark about how much longer the Norwegian skill advantage can last.


Independent building and design Complex vessels are the type of special- ised designs that the Norwegian yards are now focussing on, and, at present the demand from both the offshore and fishing sectors is buoyant. Simek, the independent yard, also


has a healthy order book. Its most recent delivery was a Marin Teknik MT 6009-L in April 2008. Te next delivery is a UT 755 LC, where ownership has been transferred to BUE Marinem for operation in the Caspian Sea. Another vessel of this same design will go to Augusta Offshore, in Italy, early in 2009.


Ship & Boat International May/June 2008


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