Havila Pollux ferry

On March 23, 2018, Norway's Ministry of Transportation and Communications split the "Norwegian Coastal Express" ferry service between Hurtigruten and the Norwegian company Havila Shipping (Havila Kystruten Ltd). The Bergen-Kirkenes-Bergen route has been operated by Hurtigruten since 1893. The Norwegian Government's annual subsidy for this regularly scheduled passenger service is NOK 788 million (~USD 100M).

In late December 2018, it was announced that Enova (a Norwegian government agency) would provide NOK 88 million (USD 10,1M) in financial support for Havila Kystruten's newbuilds (NOK 22 million per vessel). The Havila ships are from the Havyard-923 series and designed specifically for the "Norwegian Coastal Express" service. The four newbuilds are LNG-powered hybrids (with alternative battery power) and have a passenger capacity of 640 each. They were designed by Havyard Ship Technology (a subsidiary of Havyard Group, a Norwegian maritime company established in 2000, which owns Loland Verft in Leirvik, Norway).

Rolls-Royce Marine was contracted to provide Havila’s power plants and propulsion systems. The package includes 2 dual-fuel engines, 4 Bergen gas engines (two 9-cylinder and two 6-cylinder, all IMO Tier 3 compliant), 2 LNG tanks with bunkering systems, 2 LNG fuel systems, as well as control and safety systems. Propulsion is also Rolls-Royce manufactured and features 2 Azipull thrusters (with Permanent Magnet drive motors), Neptune 200 stabilizers, and tunnel thrusters (for a slimmer hull design, improved energy efficiency, and reduced noise and vibration). The LNG fuel systems are separate, custom-designed, and serve both machine rooms (forward and aft).

In late February 2019, the Canadian stock-listed company Corvus Energy was contracted by NES (Norwegian Electric Systems) to deliver and install the world’s largest ship battery package ESS (Energy Storage System / air-cooled system with patented single-cell thermal isolation). The Orca ESS battery pack weighs 86 tons, has a capacity of 6,1 MWh/6100 kWh, and allows up to 4 hours of "silent sailing." Battery power is combined with hybrid gas-electric propulsion. Each vessel’s powerplant consists of 4 LNG-powered marine engines with a combined output of 7,76 MW.

Another innovation is the heat recovery system that uses seawater for cooling. All Havila ships are also fitted with shoreside-power capabilities, allowing them to use electricity from the port’s grid while docked instead of running onboard generators.

In early April 2019, Havila Kystruten and Kongsberg Maritime signed a 10-year contract (NOK 150 million / USD 17,6M) for "Power-by-the-Hour" service for the new cruiseferries. This Kongsberg service was introduced in 2017 with NorLines (a Norwegian coastal shipping and logistics company).

• Under the Havila-Kongsberg agreement, Havila handed responsibility for service planning and performance to Kongsberg.
• The shipowner pays a fixed hourly charge per vessel. Kongsberg monitors equipment in real-time from land-based control centers, collecting data from shipboard sensors. Engineers can remotely access systems or dispatch service staff as needed.
• The "Power-by-the-Hour" package also covers planned drydock and wetdock maintenance. Kongsberg’s equipment package includes propulsion systems (Azipull thrusters with Permanent Magnet motors), tunnel thrusters, stabilizers, and LNG systems (including four Rolls-Royce Bergen C26-33L gas engines).

The construction of Havila Pollux (IMO number 9873761, hull/yard number "BARRERAS 1711") began at Barreras Shipyard (Vigo, Spain). However, in August 2019, due to financial difficulties, the shipyard suspended all work on both Pollux and Polaris and in late November 2019 canceled the orders. In late December, both unfinished hulls were towed to Tersan Shipyard (Yalova, Turkey), which was already building the other two ships (Capella and Castor). Deliveries for all four ferries were rescheduled for 2021-2022.

The deliveries of Polaris and Pollux were rescheduled for January and March 2023, respectively, but both were officially delivered from Tersan to Havila on August 1, 2023, during a ceremony attended by Havila Voyages’ CEO, Bent Martini.

In December 2022, Havila Voyages was forced to delay Polaris’ delivery (its first four coastal voyages were canceled) as financing was disrupted by EU sanctions against Russia, which banned Russian financial institutions from European business.

Havila had initially entered into an agreement with GTLK-State Transport Leasing Company (Russia’s largest leasing firm) to build and operate the four cruiseferries under long-term charters. In December 2022, Havila won a legal case in the UK (High Court of Justice, Business and Property Courts of England and Wales, Commercial Court in London) that settled disputes over vessel debt and ownership. In September 2022, Havila arranged EUR 370 million (USD 390M) in refinancing to pay Tersan Shipyard for the completion of Polaris and Pollux and to redeem existing debt. The British court confirmed that payments would be made to a frozen account, in line with sanctions. GTLK opposed but will gain access once sanctions are lifted. Polaris’ delivery was delayed pending clearance of the legal settlement.

On April 28, 2023, Havila Voyages received a license from the Central Bank of Ireland to enable legal financing and the delivery of Polaris and Pollux. To facilitate the process, Havila hired Norwegian investment banks Fearnley Securities AS (founded 1869) and Arctic Securities AS (founded 2007) to arrange payments to the frozen Russian account and release the ships from security liens.

Havila hoped to take immediate delivery of Polaris and relocate her from Turkey to Bergen for final outfitting. Polaris’ maiden voyage from Bergen was postponed from December 29, 2022, to June 12, 2023.

In June-July 2023, Havila Voyages secured financing for Pollux and Polaris by raising EUR 305M from HPS Investment Partners LLC (founded 2007, headquartered in New York City) and an additional EUR 65M in equity from Havila’s principal owners and investors. Havila Holding AS also provided a EUR 20M loan, enabling the August 2023 delivery of both ships.

Havila Polaris departed Yalova, Turkey, on August 3 (18:14 UTC), while Havila Pollux departed on August 4 (16:30 UTC). Pollux arrived in Bergen on August 17 (00:38 UTC), docking at Festningskaien Terminal.

Havila Pollux’s delivery was originally scheduled for March 2023 but was delayed, with her maiden voyage from Bergen rescheduled twice—from June 18, 2023, and finally to August 23. Polaris’ maiden voyage from Bergen was also postponed to August 17.

The ship’s christening ceremony was held on May 13, 2024, in Bryggen (Bergen). The naming was led by godmother Erna Solberg (born 1961, Norwegian politician and Prime Minister from 2013 to 2021) and attended by Bent Martini, CEO of Havila Voyages.