Røkke to build a research vessel together with WWF

Nina Jensen, Photo: heidi k bang /WWFGeneral Secretary Nina Jensen, Photo: heidi k bang /WWF

 

Will pay for the construction and operation

Billionaire Kjell Inge Røkke will pay for the construction and operation of a research vessel that will have a crew of 30 and accommodate 60 researchers. The Operator will be the Røkke company Rosellinis Four-10.

 

 

The ship will be named REV – short for research and expedition vessel – and it will be developed in collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Aftenposten writes. It is not known how much the ship is going to cost. The construction contract with the Shipbuilders Vard was signed on Monday and construction will take place in Norway and Romania.

The research vessel will be 181 meters long and will be completed in summer 2020. The vessel will be equipped to conduct research both in the atmosphere and down to 6,000 meters deep. REV will also be able to suck up and burn plastic garbage that it comes across on its journey.

Røkke says he has no plans to make any money on the project. The ship is part of his plans to let his wealth benefit the community.

– The sea has given me great opportunities. I’m grateful for that. I want to give back to society the bulk of what I’ve earned. This ship is a part of that. The idea of such a ship has evolved over many years, but the plans have become concrete in the past year, Røkke told Aftenposten.

WWF Secretary General Nina Jensen is very pleased with the cooperation with Røkke. His company Aker BioMarine and WWF have been working for ten years to ensure that krill catches in the Southern Ocean should be sustainable.

Marine life is under tremendous pressure. Temperature changes, ocean acidification, overfishing, pollution and destruction of habitats affect nature and people hard. Only since the 1970s have almost 40 percent of the amount of marine life vanished and if the pollution continues, there will be more plastic than fish in the sea by 2050, according to WWF.

– This ship will be able to raise marine research to a whole new level. It has never been as important to find solutions fast, says WWF Nina Jensen.

She mentions examples such as pollution and trash on the seabed and marine acidification as two important areas where the ship will be able to contribute new and crucial knowledge.

– The ship make highly advanced technology available to researchers worldwide. The ambition is that it should be a short distance from the documentation of the issues to concrete solutions. We are proud to be involved in the development of this initiative, says Jensen.

 

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today