Norled’s Order Marks Sembcorp Marine’s Entrance into RoPax Ferry Sector

Norwegian shipping company Norled has ordered three hybrid plug-in ropax ferries from Singapore’s shipbuilder Sembcorp Marine.

This is the first design-and-construction roll on/roll off passenger (ropax) ship project for Sembcorp Marine. The ships will be built by the group’s subsidiary LMG Marin and are scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2020.

The trio is tailored for Norled’s shortsea Hella-Vangsnes-Dragsvik connections in Norway. The 84.2-metre long multi-deck, double-ended ferries can each carry up to 300 passengers and crew, as well as 80 cars or a combination of 10 cars and 10 trailer trucks.

The vessels will operate normally on zero-emissions lithium-ion battery power at a service speed of 10 knots. When required, they can run on combined battery-diesel hybrid backup modes.

“Sembcorp Marine’s project with Norled marks our entry into the ropax ferry design and construction segment,” Head of Specialized Shipbuilding Tan Heng Jack said.

The energy-efficient solutions to be installed on the ferries will also include quick-connection shore charging plugs; auto-mooring; auto-cross; efficient hull, propulsion and heat recovery systems.

Separately, Sembcorp announced that it has won a contract for engineering, procurement, construction, hook-up and commissioning works on two topsides, to be deployed at the Hornsea 2 Offshore Wind Farm in the UK North Sea. The two topsides will be fabricated at Sembcorp Marine’s integrated yard facilities for delivery in the first quarter of 2021.

The two contracts are worth SGD 200 million (USD 144 million).