Pelagic vessel Bjarni Ólafsson AK-70, which was recently de-mothballed by owners Síldarvinnslan to fill the gap in the company’s fleet left when Barði suffered a serious fire on board, has been sold.
Bjarni Ólafssson landed its last payload for Síldarvinnslan, 700 tonnes of herring, to the Neskaupstaður procesing plant. The handover to new owners Samherji takes place immediately at the quayside in Neskaupstaður, with skipper Hjörtur Valsson and chief engineer Daníel Halldórsson expecting to head for herring grounds right away.
Samherji recently sold pelagic trawler Margrét to a Faroese company. Bjarni Ólafsson is rigged for both trawling and purse seining, offering greater flexibility and increasing the range of opportunities.
The 67-metre Bjarni Ólafsson was built in Norway in 1999. It was acquired in 2015 by Akranes company Runólfur Hallfreðsson ehf, which subsequently merged with Síldarvinnslan in 2021.
Bjarni Ólafsson isn’t expected to make an appearance in its new home port of Akureyri right away. The new owners state that when it docks in Akureyri, it’ll be for it to be given a new name and for routine maintenance ahead of the coming capelin season.
