For almost 75 years, researchers at SINTEF and NTNU have tested, researched and mapped the ocean. This knowledge forms the foundation when the Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre's first two laboratories are put into use.
The Marine structures laboratory and the Laboratory for maritime energy systems are located at Torgard outside Trondheim and were officially opened by the Minister of fisheries and ocean policy, Marianne Sivertsen Næss, on 21 August 2024.
- This is where green talk becomes green reality. It is in the Maritime energy systems laboratory that you contribute to building future energy systems for ships. And it is in the Marine structures laboratory that, through testing and research of high, international class, you find the materials and structures that will work well and efficiently in some of the world's most inhospitable places. Therefore, both are important for the development of Norwegian marine industries, says Sivertsen Næss.
Popular testing laboratories
In the Marine structures laboratory, a number of tests critical for offshore wind and other energy development offshore are carried out. There, the researchers test, among other things, how flexible pipelines and power cables withstand the changing rhythms and intensity of waves and ocean currents.
In this way, the cables' strength and lifespan are verified before they are installed out at sea.
The pipelines and cables transport oil, gas, electricity and internet data. It is therefore extremely important to minimize the risk of bursting and breaking in these mile-long systems in Norwegian and international waters.
The old Marine structures laboratory was established in the 1980s to support Norway's growing offshore oil and gas industry. Since then, the laboratory has become indispensable when it comes to meeting the structural challenges faced by slender marine structures in oceans around the world.
- The expertise and experience we have from undersea power cables in the oil and gas era is crucial when Norway switches to renewable offshore wind energy and can reopen the laboratory, ready for a new era, says research leader in SINTEF Ocean, Naiquan Ye.
In the Maritime energy systems laboratory, current and future fuel and energy systems are tested and researched. The laboratory is equipped with seven separate fuel systems that can test known and future fuels. They are all built to be able to reproduce conditions on board ocean-going vessels. In addition, there is also a battery tester for the electrical operation of boats and ships.
Maritime actors from all over the world are given the opportunity to use a state-of-the-art research laboratory. This way they can improve current propulsion systems and find new and sustainable solutions for their ships.
- We are now opening one of the world's most advanced and complete laboratories for research into future energy systems for ships, says research leader in SINTEF Ocean, Anders Valland.
The laboratory is an important contributor to several projects, such as the newly started FME project MarTrans, where 65 partners from the maritime industry and the research community aim to reduce energy consumption and replace fossil fuels with renewable fuels in order to accelerate the green transformation of the maritime sector.
- The Marine Technology Center is the gathering of forces that will ensure that Norway will also in the future be a leading nation in the green and digital transformation of the marine industries, says CEO of SINTEF, Alexandra Bech Gjørv.
About the Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre
The entire Norwegian Ocean Technology Center has a cost framework of around NOK 10 billion. The SINTEF foundation itself has invested around NOK 300 million in the laboratories at Torgard. The center will become a national knowledge center for marine technology. With a world-leading education and research environment, new laboratories and close cooperation with businesses, the center will lead the way in the green transformation of the marine industries.
The center will have its headquarters at Tyholt in Trondheim with large test pools, student laboratories, workshops and office and teaching premises. In addition to the unique laboratories at Torgard, the center also includes facilities and vessels in the Trondheimsfjord, outside Hitra/Frøya and Ålesund.
