World's northernmost fully electric car ferry starts sailing in -25°C
The debut couldn't have been any colder. However, operations have gone surprisingly well after the ferry started to shuttle between two of Norway's northernmost islands on January 1st.
The new year started with extreme cold in northernmost regions of Europe with temperatures falling as low as -25°C even along the coast of Finnmark. If you want to prove that battery-powered technology works in a cold climate, you couldn’t find a better moment.
"This is not just about new ferries. It's about the future. About showing that green technology works – even in the far north, even in tough conditions," operator Torghatten said in a statement on Friday after the ferry sailed in regular traffic for two weeks.
The 50-meters-long M/F Vargsund has the capacity to carry 28 cars and 98 passengers. Sailing the route between Kvaløya and Seiland in Finnmark, she is officially the world's northernmost fully battery-powered car ferry.
A second ferry similar in design, the M/F Seiland, will come around April 1st. From then on, the route between Nyvoll and Korsfjorden on the western shores of the Alta fjord in Finnmark will also be served with zero emission.
Torghatten says their aim is not only to reduce its own carbon footprint, but also to pave the way for the entire industry. The company is Norway's largest ferry operator.
Last summer, the most heavily trafficked ferry connection in Northern Norway - between Bognes and Lødingen - started to be served with a fully electric ferry.
Northern Norway, along with the northernmost regions of Finland and Sweden, are now showcasing how the world is moving from a carbon-emitting transport sector to zero-emission future.
The Barents Observer has previously reported about other projects in northern Scandinavia making the transport sector electric, like the battery-powered tour coaches, snowmobiles, a fishing boat, planned electric planes for Finnair and Widerøe, cruise tours on Svalbard, electric express buses in Umeå and mining-trucks at Aitik in Gällivare and LKAB in Kiruna.
Even Norway's Armed Forces use battery-powered bikes when guarding the border with Russia.
A total of 95.9% of all new cars registered in Norway in 2025 were electric vehicles.
