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Yara Birkeland press kit
Yara Birkeland status
November 2020
In the end of November, the ship will be handed over to Yara from the Norwegian shipyard Vard Brattvåg. Upon delivery the vessel will undergo testing for container loading and stability, before the ship will sail to a port and test area in Horten for further preparations for autonomous operation.
Yara Birkeland is an example of Yara's ambition to innovate and find climate-friendly solutions which can be commercialized. However, innovation projects come with uncertainties and challenges. In particular, the autonomous logistics on land that have proven to be a challenge for the project. The construction of the ship has been done according to plan with slight delays, including the fitting of the battery, control and navigation systems, For the autonomous logistics on land the project team continues to look for simplified solutions to this.
Yara's goal is to complete the project and bring the emission-free ship into commercial operation. Different ownership models or partnerships will be evaluated for operation and commercialization.
Click on the boxes below to see previous updates
Status April 2020
The hull of the Yara Birkeland vessel was launched to sea in Romania in February 2020 and is expected to arrive at the Norwegian shipyard in May where she will be fitted with various control- and navigation systems and undergo testing before delivery to Yara. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the changed global outlook, Yara has decided to pause further development of the vessel and will assess next steps together with its partners.
Yara and technology company Kongsberg teamed up in 2017 with the ambition to build the world's first autonomous and zero-emission container vessel. Replacing 40,000 truck journeys a year, Yara Birkeland will reduce NOx and CO2 emissions and improve road safety in a densely populated urban area in Norway.
Kristin Nordal
Vice President Corporate Communications
Josiane Kremer
Director External Communications
Vessel estimated key figures and facts
120 TEU Open Hatch Container Feeder - fully battery powered solution. Prepared for autonomous operation.
Main particulars
- LOA 80 m
- Beam 15 m
Depth 12 m
- Draught (full) 6.3 m
- Eco speed 6-7 knots
- Max speed 13 knots
Capacity
- Cargo capacity 120 TEU
- Deadweight 3200 mt
Propulsion
- Azipull pods 2 x 900 kW
- Tunnel thrusters 2 x 700 kW
Batteries
- Capacity 7 MWh
Download images
Visit our Image library to download Yara Birkeland pictures in high-resolution.
Relevant links
Corporate releases
- Yara selects Norwegian shipbuilder VARD for zero-emission vessel Yara Birkeland (August 15, 2018)
- Yara and Kalmar to develop world's first fully-digitalized and zero emission cargo solution for Yara Birkeland (May 24, 2018)
- Yara Birkeland design revealed and test model demonstrated for the first time (September 29, 2017)
- YARA and KONGSBERG enter into partnership to build world's first autonomous and zero emissions ship (May 10, 2017)
News and features
- Yara Birkeland wins Norwegian Industry Climate Prize (in Norwegian - November 07, 2018)
- The first ever zero emission, autonomous ship (March 14, 2018)
- Enova to support the building of Yara Birkeland (September 28, 2017)
