Diversification has finally started to pay dividends for Norwegian shipyards and marine equipment manufacturers amid the persistently weak newbuilding demand for offshore vessels.
Once focusing on construction of offshore supply vessels for the oil and gas sector, the close-knit Norwegian players have made inroads into ferries, expedition cruiseships and fishboats in recent years, according to industry data and officials.
“When the offshore market evaporated, we needed to consolidate to see what the future would be,” Kristian Saetre, managing director of shipbuilder Ulstein Verft, tells TradeWinds.
