1. Norway Funds Testing Programme for Nuclear-Powered Shipping
Source: Ship & BunkerDate:
Norway’s Research Council has allocated NOK20 million, approximately $2 million, to a marine nuclear propulsion pilot led by Emerald Nuclear Norway. The programme will examine how a five-megawatt microreactor can operate alongside vessel power, storage and control systems. A test facility near Aalesund is planned for 2027, initially using electrical heating rather than nuclear fuel. Island Offshore is targeting a first vessel installation in 2031–32. For shipowners and equipment suppliers, the development represents an early-stage investigation of an alternative propulsion pathway, rather than evidence that nuclear-powered commercial operations are imminent.