Havila Voyages` second ship, Havila Castor, docked in Bergen early Thursday morning ahead of its debut on the classic coastal route between Bergen and Kirkenes.
“This is a milestone for our shipping company, and it was great to see the beautiful Havila Castor arrive here to Bergen,” said CEO Bent Martini, as the ship arrived in Norway having sailed from Tersan in Turkey, where she was built.
“The crew onboard has made a fantastic effort on the voyage from Turkey and arrived much earlier than expected in Bergen. At the same time, they gained a lot of experience from the return voyage with Havila Capella last year and have performed the sailing with significantly less consumption of natural gas (LNG). It is simply impressive what they have achieved.”
The Havila Castor has an energy-efficient hull design, created to handle the varied weather along the Norwegian coast. The ship has the world’s largest battery pack on a passenger ship with 6.1 megawatt hours (MWh), which means that the ship can sail emission-free for up to four hours.
“Our ships are the most environmentally friendly passenger ships that have ever sailed the classic coastal route between Bergen and Kirkenes, and already in June, Havila Castor will be the first ship to sail into the world heritage in the Geirangerfjord silently and emission-free,” added Martini.
“Our investment in climate, environment and sustainability is more than just words. We will deliver, and we deliver from day one on the requirements that were set in the contract with the Ministry of Transport,” he said.
The Havila Castor is also built for climate-neutral fuel alternatives such as hydrogen and ammonia. With current technology, gradual blending of biogas will further reduce CO2 emissions. The ship will now go through the final preparations before the first roundtrip starts from Bergen on on May 10.
