Per Saevik-controlled Havila Kystruten is negotiating with domestic and other yards for ships it intends to offer for a proposed passenger service off Norway's coast.
The Norwegian shipowner's move into the coastal passenger trade represents a challenge to Hurtigruten, which has been the only player on the route for more than a century.
The Norwegian government is gearing up to decide which company will operate the service that calls at 34 ports from Bergen to Kirkenes.
