Svart will be the world’s first energy-positive hotel, located close to the Svartisen glacier, north of the Arctic Circle, in the Meløy municipality. The design is low-impact, the construction based on local materials to the extent possible, and subject to rigid sustainability criteria. And its setting is unique.

Designed by Norwegian architects

The hotel, which is designed by the Norwegian architect firm Snøhetta, will have about 100 rooms, an onsite education and design lab, and a sustainable farm producing ingredients for the hotel’s four restaurants.

Svart will be open to overnight guests, day-visitors, and to the local community.

The architecture is inspired by local coastal building traditions and stands on wooden piles dissolving the boundary between land and fjord. The shape of the hotel provides a panoramic view of the fjord and an experience of living in proximity to nature. From a distance the resort resembles a UFO that has just landed.

Highest energy efficiency standards

Svart is the first building designed and built to the highest energy efficiency standards in the Northern Hemisphere. The hotel will use 85 percent less energy than comparable projects and will produce enough solar energy to cover both the hotel operations, including the boat shuttle service, and the energy needed to construct the building. The project will therefore generate more energy than it consumes over a period of six years, including construction, use and dismantling.

The aim is to develop a scalable technology that can be applied to other buildings to help further reduce energy consumption.

The resort is scheduled to open in 2021.