Marell Boats receives order for 5 RIBs

The orders include Marell’s most recent model, the M12 RIB, which is based on the M15 platform that was awarded ’Interceptor of the Year’ by the Baird publication in 2019 and 2020.

As well as being in use as a sightseeing boat in the Arctic Ocean by Hurtigruten Svalbard, the MI5 was also chosen by Marine Police in Stockholm, and as a fire fighter craft in the Swedish capital.

The M12 combines a central helm station with an almost absent planing threshold, providing the helmsman with full control and 360^o visibility at all speeds and in all conditions, says Marell.

The five boats will be deployed in different places in southern Norway for surveillance, search and rescue, boarding and control of recreational boats. They can carry up to 10 people plus equipment.

Two crew members can sit in the wheelhouse, and the low aft deck is suitable for divers, drones and life rafts as well as acting as a platform for hoisting and retrieving injured people. The boats have a wide beam, allowing easy passage on both sides of the wheelhouse, from bow to stern.

”The canopy is made of vacuum moulded GRP to reduce weight and noise, and to insulate the crew area from the effects from both cold and warm weather,” says Marell. ”The novelty of this design approach makes the craft suitable for both arctic and tropical conditions.”

The boats have a twin engine set-up, including the new Mercury 600hp V12 Verado engines with the ability to travel at speeds of more than 55 knots.

“Marell Boats has offered a robust boat, which in this procurement process best fulfilled the specifications published by NPSS,” says Marianne Haahjem, Department Director for Procurement and Legal in the Norwegian Police Shared Services. ”For example, the boat facilitates close cooperation between the helmsman and navigator during high-speed manoeuvering. It also delivers the best ratio of speed to load capacity. We expect this to be a solid addition to the Norwegian Police in the years to come.”

The boats should be delivered in the second half of this year and first half of next.