Offering a fine example of intra-Scandinavian co-operation, these five striking looking aluminium, outboard powered, RIB patrol boats for the Norwegian Police were created in neighbouring Sweden. As with all Marell creations, the boats are innovative, safe, fast and efficient. They are truly multi-role and their crews will love them.
"In addition to the powerful appearance and superb handling at all speeds, the acceleration and manoeuvrability for boarding operations ensure that the boat is a significant improvement over other vessels," Gerard Törneman, Commercial Sales Manager for Marell Boats, told Baird Maritime.
"There is no need for additional boarding platforms due to the high-rise foredeck, and the lower aft deck makes it more efficient for the crew to conduct rescue operations and to manoeuvre alongside smaller vessels.
Törneman added that, at cruising speed, the boat's fuel consumption is the lowest in the market for this type of vessel.
"We used an already proven Marell platform as the base to make sure that the boat was tailored to demanding requirements. We learned that the relevant authorities might change regulations while construction is still underway. The need to implement the necessary changes to comply with new regulations can be challenging, but our cooperation with the customer helped mitigate any difficulty."
Törneman remarked that Marell Boats enjoyed continued progress in 2023, adding that the year was better compared to 2022.
"We have been enjoying profit and an increase in turnover every year beginning in 2016. The future also looks promising for us with new orders for pilot boats. We've also been qualifying for tenders from coast guard, police, and military authorities for volume orders of both open T-top and cabin versions of our 12-metre RIBs."
When asked about the future of the broader Scandinavian workboat industry, Törneman said that it will see aluminium foiling boats becoming available in greater numbers. This is due to their unique control surfaces (i.e., foils) as well as the environmental-friendliness, light weight, inherent strength, and improved fire resistance of aluminium when used as a hull material.
"We recognise that foiling boats are slowly coming up to commercial standards and so some of our customers are asking for foiling boats fitted with electric propulsion," he told Baird Maritime. "A number of builders in Sweden are even starting to look into foiling arrangements to reduce friction and energy consumption. Fortunately, we can address this need by producing some of the strongest and lightest aluminium boats in the market."