NIOZ research vessel to be built by Astilleros Armon

Dutch ocean research agency NIOZ has selected Spanish yard Astilleros Armon to build a research vessel. A final contract is expected to be awarded soon.

Armon came ahead in an EU-wide tender for the vessel. It is scheduled to be delivered in summer 2025. The ship will be named Anna Weber-van Bosse and will replace the current research vessel Pelagia, which has several decades of service behind it.

In addition to technical and economic aspects, sustainability also played an important role in the development of the concept design and award of the new ship to be built. In accordance with the tender documents, the yards included in their bids that the ship should be prepared to use methanol as a carbon-neutral fuel in the future. Also, the ship will be equipped with a battery pack to allow hybrid operation. Solar panels will also be installed as saving fuel is central to the design.