VESSEL REVIEW | Ingeborg Arntsen – Norwegian fishing family acquires hybrid longliner/netter

Danish shipbuilder Vestværftet recently handed over a new longliner/gillnetter to Nordsten, a company owned by brothers Jack-Allan and Hans-Michael Arntsen of Lofoten in northern Norway. Named Ingeborg Arntsen after their mother, the newbuild replaces the brothers' current boat Tommy Junior, which was built in 1991 and had been in operation with Nordsten since 2007 until recently being sold to a sister company also owned by the family.

The Arntsens decided to purchase a new boat upon realising the earlier Tommy Junior had reached its limits in terms of providing safe living and working conditions for crews. With a new boat offering improvements in such conditions, the brothers believed it would be possible to land catches of even higher quality.

Hybrid electric propulsion for greater operational flexibility

The Bureau Veritas-classed Ingeborg Arntsen has all-steel construction, an LOA of 20.99 metres (68.86 feet), a moulded beam of 8.5 metres (28 feet), a gross tonnage of 252, and accommodation for eight crewmembers.

The hybrid propulsion arrangement includes a D2862LE447 735kW (986hp) diesel engine and two auxiliary engines from MAN, a Corvus Orca Energy 315kWh battery pack with peak shaving, two Hundested SFT4 electric bow thrusters, an AS:Scan steering system, and a Finnoy propeller and gear setup. Acquisition of the vessel's battery pack was made possible through Norwegian government funding via state financing agency Enova, which has been assisting in the procurement of electric propulsion systems for both new and existing vessels operating in Norwegian waters..

Enhanced liveaboard spaces

The MAN engines are fitted with selective catalytic reduction systems to ensure compliance with IMO Tier III emissions requirements. A C.C. Jensen fuel filter and a DEIF power management system are also fitted, while the deck equipment includes winches and drums supplied by Thyborøn Skibs and Motor and two cranes from TMP Hydraulik.

The fish hold can store up to 56 containers weighing up to 500 kg each while a Buus Køleteknik slush ice system can produce up to 11,000 litres of ice per day for use by the hold and the washing tubs. The accommodation spaces for the crew include five cabins (compared to Tommy Junior’s two), a galley, and a mess. During normal operations, only six crewmembers will be embarked.

Jotun paint was used for all exterior surfaces.

Ingeborg Arntsen will commence operational sailings under its new owners this autumn out of its homport of Svolvær. The vessel will focus on cod and Greenland halibut off Lofoten and Finnmark.