World’s First Hybrid Cruise Ship Completes Sea Trials

Hurtigruten’s cruise ship MS Roald Amundsen is nearing completion at Kleven Yard and has just completed her first sea trials in the fjords along the western coast of Norway.

MS Roald Amundsen is hailed as the world's first hybrid cruise ship. Custom built for some of the most extreme waters on the planet, she is currently undergoing final outfitting alongside her sister ship MS Fridtjof Nansen at Kleven.

The 140-meter (460-foot) expedition cruise ships, accommodating 530 guests, feature technology such as battery packs and specially designed ice-strengthened hull. They will be capable of limited periods of all-electric operation and are expected to be about 20 percent more fuel efficient than comparable conventionally-powered vessels. 

After delivery this spring, MS Roald Amundsen’s maiden season includes expedition cruises along the Norwegian coast, to Svalbard and Greenland, before traversing the Northwest Passage and heading south to Antarctica. 

A third hybrid powered expedition vessel will be added to the fleet in 2021.