Damen Folla, part of the Netherlands-based Damen Shipyards Group, has delivered a new hybrid-electric workboat to Mowi Norway for use in aquaculture operations.

The vessel, the SeV 1508, was handed over during the Nor-Fishing exhibition in Trondheim on August 19, Damen said in a press release on Wednesday. Nor-Fishing, held biennially in Trondheim, is one of the world's largest fisheries technology trade fairs and a regular showcase for maritime and aquaculture suppliers.

It is the seventh and final vessel to be delivered under a framework agreement signed with Nova Sea in 2022. Nova Sea was acquired by Mowi in 2025 and is now part of Mowi Norway's Northern Region. Mowi is the world's largest producer of Atlantic salmon, and Norway — where salmon farming ranks among the country's most valuable export industries — accounts for roughly half of global farmed Atlantic salmon output.

The 14.9-metre aluminium workboat is equipped with 444 kWh of battery capacity, a generator and electric thrusters. Its hybrid-electric propulsion system is designed to support quieter operations and lower emissions. The delivery comes as Norway works to cut emissions across its maritime sectors: the country has set a target of halving emissions from domestic shipping and fishing vessels by 2030 compared with 2005 levels, and battery and hybrid systems have been spreading across the aquaculture fleet, from workboats to wellboats and feed barges.

The framework agreement was established to replace older workboats with more efficient vessels.

Hybrid-electric propulsion is gaining ground in the workboat and short-sea shipping segments, while battery-electric power remains less suited to larger vessels operating on longer voyages. Norway has been an early mover in electric maritime transport since the battery-powered car ferry Ampere entered service on the Sognefjord in 2015.

Source: Ship & Bunker