Kiel Inge Røkke is one of the richest men in Norway, with an estimated net worth of $2.2 billion. He is a self-made billionaire who never even finished high-school but started working as a fisherman at 18 and gradually built a leading worldwide fisheries business.
Røkke’s fortune was made in the sea. Now he wants to give back to the sea by building a research vessel that will collect up to 5 tons of plastics from the water daily.In an interview for Oslo’s Aftenposen newspaper (translation needed), Røkke talked about the yacht and his motivation to build it.
“The sea has given me great opportunities. I’m grateful for that. I want to give back to society the bulk of what I’ve earned. This ship is a part of that. The idea of such a ship has evolved over many years, but the plans have become concrete in the past year.”
When completed in 2020, the REV (research expedition vessel) will be the world’s largest yacht. It will be operated independently by the world’s largest conservation organization – the World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF) and will be able to accommodate 60 researchers in addition to a crew of 30.
The ship will carry equipment capable of conducting environmental monitoring both in the oceans (up to 20,000 ft. deep) and the atmosphere. It will also be capable of collecting and safely melting up to 5 tonnes of plastic per day.
The post A Norwegian Billionaire Is Building The World’s Biggest Yacht to Collect Plastic From Oceans appeared first on FeedBox.