Ambassador Alberto Colella was in Tromsø Saturday November 17, 2018 to take part in the inauguration ceremony of the “Crown Prince Haakon”, the most advanced icebreaker research vessel in the world and the new flagship of Norwegian scientific research, entirely manufactured in Italy by Fincantieri at the Muggiano shipyards (La Spezia).
100 meters (330 feet) long and 21 meters (70 feet) wide, the ship can accommodate up to 55 people: scientists, researchers, students and crew members. It has advanced laboratories for carrying out research activities in the field of oceanography, geophysics, marine biology and marine geology.
At sea for more than a year, the ship has already completed a number of scientific missions in the Arctic and is now preparing to set course in a few weeks for Antarctica for a six-month mission.
The Crown Prince Haakon was built in Italy, but the final outfitting works were carried out at a VARD shipyard (also controlled by Fincanteri) in Norway. The delivery took place in March this year.
Godmother of the ship is Princess Ingrid Alexandra, who christened it in a solemn ceremony in the presence of the Crown Prince Haakon, the Norwegian Ministers of the Environment, Higher Education and Fisheries, local authorities, the Rector of the Arctic University in Tromsø and the Directors of the Norwegian Polar Institute and of the Institute for Marine Research.
Speaking during the ceremony, the Ambassador recalled the Italian manufacturing of the ship, the very high quality and cutting-edge technologies used in its construction and equipment, as well as the close cultural and historical links existing between Italy and Norway, also in Arctic exploration.
Text of the Ambassador’s speech
The speech is also available in the “Ambassador” section of this website
https://amboslo.esteri.it/ambasciata_oslo/en/ambasciata/ambasciatore/
