Green Yard Kleven in Norway has announced that it has been contracted to rebuild the 2002-built, 15,000-ton, 634-passenger Finnmarken into a hybrid expedition vessel for Hurtigruten.

The main subcontractors will be the Hareid Group and Fjord Technology also in Ulsteinvik, Norway, working with Kleven.

Aeron will be responsible for the HVAC system and Siemens for the hybrid package.

Public rooms and cabins aboard the Finnmarken were renovated and upgraded last year, and the technical will now complete the conversion into an expedition to be renamed the Otto Sverdrup (after a Norwegian Arctic explorer).

Kleven has already built the hybrid Roald Amundsen and Fridjof Nansen for Hurtigruten with diesel engine powerplants combined with battery power.

The ship will also be equipped for shorepower.

The work is scheduled to start in the middle of February and is slated to be completed in spring after which the Otto Sverdrup will launch expedition cruises along the Norwegian coast.

The Finnmarken has previously serviced in Hurtigruten’s coastal fleet running 24/7, 365 days a year.