FS ''Marjata'' is a Norwegian purpose-built

electronic intelligence Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of '' signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ...

collection vessel (

ELINT Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of '' signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ...

), which was ordered by the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

in 2010. It was baptized on 6 December 2014 by Prime Minister

Erna Solberg Erna Solberg (; born 24 February 1961) is a Norwegian politician and the current Leader of the Opposition. She served as the 35th prime minister of Norway from 2013 to 2021, and has been Leader of the Conservative Party since May 2004. Solberg w ...

. The ship is manned by crew from the

Norwegian Intelligence Service The Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) or Etterretningstjenesten (E-tjenesten) is a Norwegian military intelligence agency under the Chief of Defence and the Ministry of Defence. History Olav Njølstad says that the " stay-behind cooperatio ...

Role and specifications

The ship is the fourth bearing the name ''Marjata''. The first was operative in the period 1966–1975, the second in the period 1976-1995 and the third 1995-(still operating, but renamed

FS Eger FS ''Eger'' (FS ''Marjata III'' for most of its career) is a purpose-built electronic intelligence collection vessel ( ELINT). She is the third ship that bears the name ''Marjata''; the first was operational in the period of 1966-1975 and the s ...

). ''Marjata'' was intended as the replacement for her predecessor, but it was decided to keep both for the same role. Previously, these ships were called research ships, but the new ''Marjata'' is the first to officially conduct intelligence as well. On some missions she has been accompanied by her predecessor,

; these missions are often intelligence or spy missions. The ship has neither weapons nor helicopters on board. The ship measures 5000 gt, 126 meters long and 23.5 meters wide.

Construction

The

Norwegian parliament The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years base ...

granted in 2009 money to invest in a new intelligence vessel. The Norwegian Defence Logistics Organisation announced the project in 2011, and the company Vard Langsten (now

Fincantieri Fincantieri S.p.A. () is an Italian shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. Already the largest shipbuilder in Europe, after the acquisition of Vard in 2013, Fincantieri group doubled in size to become the fourth largest in the world (20 ...

) was given the contract after competing with several other Norwegian shipyards. The hull is built by Vard Tulcea in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

, while Vard Langsten in Tomrefjorden in

Romsdal Romsdal is a Districts of Norway, traditional district in the Norwegian county Møre og Romsdal, located between Nordmøre and Sunnmøre. The district of Romsdal comprises Aukra, Fræna, Midsund, Molde, Nesset, Rauma, Norway, Rauma, Sandøy, and V ...

completed the ship. The installment of the technical equipment took place from April to November 2015 at

Naval Weapons Station Yorktown Naval Weapons Station Yorktown is a United States Navy base in York County, James City County, and Newport News in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. It provided a weapons and ammunition storage and loading facility for ships of the United ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...

. The vessel had a cost framework of NOK 1.5 billion. Some sources say NOK 1.2 billion, but the cost frame has subsequently increased from 1,246 billion to NOK 1,379 billion. The new ship is 126 meters long and 23.5 meters wide and came into operation in 2016.

Change of homeport

When the ship entered service in 2016 the NIS confirmed her homeport would be at

Kirkenes Kirkenes (; ; Skolt Sami: ''Ǩeârkknjargg;'' fi, Kirkkoniemi; ; russian: Киркенес) is a town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town lies on a peninsula along the Bøk ...

, only 7 km from the Norwegian-Russian border. In 2019 the NIS denied to confirm Kirkenes as her home port when asked by the Norwegian online newspaper ''aldrimer.no''. In July 2020 the

Norwegian Ministry of Defence The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Defence ( no, Det kgl. Forsvarsdepartement) is a Norway, Norwegian government ministry in charge of the formation and implementation of national security and defence policy, and for the overall management and contr ...

confirmed that

Harstad ( se, Hárstták) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the town of Harstad, the most populous town in Central Hålogaland, ...

, 334 km to the west, is the new official homeport for the intelligence ship. Over the last few years, the region of eastern

Finnmark Finnmark (; se, Finnmárku ; fkv, Finmarku; fi, Ruija ; russian: Финнмарк) was a county in the northern part of Norway, and it is scheduled to become a county again in 2024. On 1 January 2020, Finnmark was merged with the neighbouri ...

county, and Kirkenes in particular, has been troubled by Russian jamming of

GPS signals GPS signals are broadcast by Global Positioning System satellites to enable satellite navigation. Receivers on or near the Earth's surface can determine location, time, and velocity using this information. The GPS satellite constellation is ope ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marjata Ships of the Royal Norwegian Navy 2014 ships