Known
for its remote, unforgiving terrain and polar bears, Svalbard is a Norwegian
island situated between mainland Norway and the North Pole – it’s one of the
world’s most northernmost inhabited areas and also home to a RANGER EV.
The
RANGER EV belongs to Hurtigruten, the biggest travel company in Norway and the
largest employer in Svalbard.
Owning
three hotels on the island, a number of restaurants, a lunch bar, two shops –
which sell expedition and safety equipment – and the Polaris dealer, IGP.
Hurtigruten Svalbard is also responsible for operating the Culture House.
Kjetil Viklund,
General Manager at IGP, said: “We used the RANGER EV a lot for moving things
from our storage unit to the shop and vice versa. We also use it as a
demonstration unit for our customers. It also is handy when we have special
guests to the island who can borrow it as a form on transport.”
The
features of the RANGER EV lend themselves to making it a useful machine for the
company. “It has a good loading capacity and is perfect for bringing goods from
our storage unit to our shop. It’s very comfortable for the driver and a
passenger and gives us shelter from the weather – with average temperatures
between minus 9 and minus 16 degrees Celsius cover is appreciated. It’s also
very quiet and often it’s easier to use the RANGER rather than a car.”
With
the importance of maintaining the biodiversity of the island at the centre of
inhabitants minds, the focus on the environment and limiting humans impact is
key.
With
stunning scenery, a highly diverse and concentration of wildlife and amazing
experiences on offer, Svalbard is quickly cementing its place on the tourism
map, but with this is the responsibility of ensuring that the environment
remains central to operations. “For me, electric powered vehicles are the
future and an environmental focus is very important – as well all know that
fossil fuels will not last forever. In my mind, it will take many many years
for the market to completely change, but I’m happy that we’ve started.”
Also
offering petrol and diesel engines for the RANGER, Polaris celebrated rolling
the one-millionth RANGER machine off the production line in 2017 and 2018 marks
two decades since the utility vehicle was introduced to the Polaris line-up.
Forming a key part of the Polaris product line, the RANGER is used all over the
globe for a variety of tasks.
