Demanding underwater blasting, harbour deepening and rock dredging

Over twenty years of experience in Iceland, Faroe Islands and Shetland Islands

Specifications for Hagtaks clients – we drill then blast the sea bed to fragment the rock into pieces that can be removed by dredgers. Drilling and blasting trenches for outfall pipelines and areas for harbour deepening. We use controlled blasting techniques to minimise vibrations and environmentally friendly. This is particularly important if we are blasting near structures or residencies.

Our projects range from removing small boulder outcrops to massive port developments. Our equipment is designed to fit into standard shipping containers, allowing us to mobilise to anywhere in the world.

Hagtak works to provide environmental impact assessments, and measurements, control, and mitigation of underwater blasting.

The story of Hagtak –

Hagtak was founded in 1991. The founders of the company were the owners of Hagvirki hf. and the Swedish construction company NCC-international Ab. The original goal of the company Hagtak was to be a mutual front in making offers for the bigger projects in Iceland. From 1991 until July 2005 Aðalsteinn Hallgrímsson was Hagtak’s CEO.

The first years Hagtak’s business was primarily about renting machinery. It got the offer of construction the interior of the National Library of Iceland during the years 1992-1994, for which the government was the client.

In the year 1993 NCC was bought out and the total amount of outstanding shares was decreased by the amount of NCC’s shares. Hagtak was then owned by Aðalsteinn Hallgrímsson, Gísli Friðjónsson, Jóhann G. Bergþórsson en Svavar Skúlason. From then on, the company was owned by the original Hagvirki hf. Since Hagvirki hf was founded around 1981, those founders had worked together through thick and thin. As they got older, their participation in rounding up the business has been varying, but a close eye has always been laid on the way things went and mutual strategic decisions have been taken. After NCC’s sell out, the field of activity was expanded and machinery was updated and/or changed. Svavar Skúlason arranged machinery for the company to construct harbours. This machinery has since then been expanded and/or improved to perform other projects.

All of the workers had a long experience of diverse projects from Hagvirki’s business and Hagvirki-Kletts business since the year 1979.

By the bankruptcy of the company Hagvirki-Klettur in 1994, Hagtak took the job over of finishing the existing projects, like the music school of Hafnarfjordur and two roads. Hagtak also started it’s first harbour project by explosions and research drilling. Starting in 1995 other harbours were dredged by explosions, to incorporate steel divider panels and research drilling was carried out under sea. Steel panels were also made by Hagtak.