Norway’s Equinor has signed a contract with Eidesvik Offshore for the conversion of the Viking Energy supply vessel to ammonia operation. The vessel supplies Equinor's installations on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS).
Viking Energy will be the world's first supply vessel fueled by ammonia, according to Equnior. Wärtsilä will build the engine on behalf of Eidesvik Offshore. The necessary conversion and installation of the new engine together with the complete fuel gas supply system and exhaust after-treatment from Wärtsilä will take place in 2026. The vessel is expected to rejoin the Equinor fleet later that year.
“We have an ambition to halve the maritime emissions associated with our Norwegian operations by 2030,” said Ørjan Kvelvane, Equinor's senior vice president for joint operations support. “With this contract, we will, in collaboration with Eidesvik Offshore, employ a new low-emission technology. We strongly believe in the use of ammonia as a fuel on our supply vessels.”
According to Equinor, converting the vessel to ammonia operation, Eidesvik Offshore and Wärtsilä will cut emissions from Viking Energy by at least 70%. Equinor and Eidesvik Offshore have a 21-year history of collaboration on the environmental technology to be used on the vessel.
At the time of delivery in 2003, the vessel was the world’s first LNG-fueled supply vessel. The vessel was also the first in the world to receive DNVs “Battery Power” notation.
In addition to using the vessel in operations, Equinor will contribute to funding of the conversion to ammonia operation. The project receives 5 million euros in support through the EU Horizon Europe program.
"The offshore fleet on the NCS is aging and needs renewal,” said Kvelvane. “Investing in new technology is expensive, and there are many uncertainties. At the same time, scaling up the use of operational technology to enable the necessary transformation is urgent. Cooperation with the authorities and competent suppliers on phasing in recent technology is essential to achieving the emission targets we have set.”
The Norwegian government has announced that it will establish requirements for low-emission solutions from 2025, and zero emissions from new supply vessels from 2029. In addition to this contract, Equinor has also made an inquiry in the market for supply vessels capable of running on ammonia.
Equinor has exercised options to extend the contract for the Viking Energy supply vessel. The contract extension runs from April 2025 to 2030. The contract also includes options for further extensions. Equinor currently has contracts for between 25 and 35 supply vessels on the NCS at any given time and a total of approximately 45 offshore vessels within supply, anchor handling, and emergency preparedness.
