FEBRUARY 9, 2016 — Norwegian offshore service vessel specialist Eidesvik has chartered its subsea vessel Acergy Viking to Siemens Wind Power for nine months as an accommodation and service vessel in German
FEBRUARY 4, 2016 – Danish offshore windfarm installation specialist A2Sea reports that, due to harsh weather, its jack-up installation barge Sea Worker capsized Tuesday night while still grounded after a January 27
JANUARY 21, 2016 — The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Stockdale (DDG 106) left the pier at Coronado, CA, yesterday burning a fuel that’s a mixture of waste beef fat and
JANUARY 15, 2016 — A report prepared for the Danish Maritime Authority by DNV GL sets out the regulations and industry standards applicable to maritime operations in the offshore wind sectors of
Built for Great Yarmouth, U.K., based Seajacks International, the jack-up vessel is based on the Gusto MSC NG14000X design and has more than 8,000 metric tons of available variable deck load. Equipped with a 1,540-metric-ton Huisman leg-encircling crane and a usable deck space in excess of 5,000 sq m the unit is outfitted with 105-m legs with the ability to install components in water depths to 65 m in North Sea conditions.
The rig is capable of meeting the installation needs of jumbo-monopiles, jackets, and turbines of future wind farms in deeper waters farther from shore.
“Industry growth depends on innovation and new designs,” says ABS Chairman, President and CEO Christopher J. Wiernicki. “As a technology leader, ABS is pleased to work with Seajacks as it develops and launches vessels with increasingly greater capabilities.”
Seajacks CEO Blair Ainslie credits the strong working relationship among the project participants for the successful delivery of this unit.
“The cooperation among Seajacks, ABS and SHI was vital to the success of this newbuild effort,” he says. “As we bring new designs to the market, we rely on partners who are willing to take on projects like this one that break new ground in the industry.”
Since 2009, Seajacks has invested in five self-propelled jackup units, all of which have been classed by ABS. The Seajacks Scylla is a milestone for the company as it is considered to be the most technically advanced installation vessel in the market.
The Seajacks Scylla complies with ABS classification requirements for self-propelled jack-up units, including DPS-2 for dynamic positioning capability; ACCU, which applies to automatic centralized control unmanned units; and CRC for crane register certificate.
In early December, Seajacks Scylla will begin her journey from South Korea to Europe on-board the heavy load carrier vessel, HLV Osprey, and is expected to arrive in Rotterdam around the end of January. Seajacks operations teams will then prepare the vessel for her first project next spring.
NOVEMBER 10, 2015 — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) yesterday held a lease sale offering nearly 344,000 acres in federal waters offshore New Jersey for potential wind energy development. The
Delta has awarded Damen a construction contract that will see the first of the vessels launched in early 2017. Following fabrication of the hull in Poland, Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld in the Netherlands will complete the final outfitting process.
“For the last couple of years we’ve been working on this new design with Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld,” says Delta Marine General Manager Dave McNaughtan. “We came up with concepts – gave them to Damen, who would put those ideas on the drawing board. They gave their expertise – adding the engineering for example – and then came back to us.”
“Client feedback is very important to us,” says Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld Managing Director Jos van Woerkum. “It has been great to work so closely with Delta Marine to develop this new design.”
“Damen are very good at developing their vessels,” continues Mr. McNaughtan. “Even their established vessels like Multi Cats and Shoalbusters are continually getting better.”
The new design has evolved from the Multi Cat.
“We have changed the design by moving the wheelhouse forward and leaving the aft deck open,” says Mr. McNaughtan. “We’ve managed to keep it under the 500-tonne mark. This was a critical factor – one that will help keep the costs down.”The Renewables Service Vessel 3315 will be able to take on a lot of the work larger offshore construction vessels currently perform, says Mr. McNaughtan.
“We’ll have full DP2 capability and, with such a wide deck, we’ll be able to fit a cable lay carousel, work class ROVs or cable trenching machines,” he says.
The vessel will also be fitted with two large HS Marine cranes and a 4-point mooring system.
The vessel will service a five year contract from DONG Energy that will see it act as a mother ship for wind turbine technicians as they perform maintenance work on Race Bank Offshore Wind Farm in the U.K. The contract will commence September 1, 2017 and includes an option for a five year extension
“This contract enables us to expand our business into the renewable energy sector,” says Østensjø Rederi CEO Johan Rokstad. “It has been the strategy of Østensjø Rederi to diversify our operations. Thus, we are pleased that DONG Energy has awarded us this exciting opportunity in a sector we believe will have further demands for similar vessels in the near future.”
The vessel is the twelfth ordered from Astilleros Gondan by Østensjø Rederi. It will be designed and equipped by Rolls-Royce and will be the first to be built to a new UT 540 WP ship design from Rolls-Royce developed specifically to support operations in shallow waters at offshore wind farms.
“We have worked closely with Rolls-Royce to develop a design we believe will be well suited to servicing the specific operational demands of supporting offshore wind farms,” says Mr. Rokstad. “We look forward to continuing this good cooperation in carrying the project through to completion.”
The ship is designed with a high focus on seakeeping capabilities, excellent station keeping performance, improved comfort and safety on board, and reduced fuel consumption.
As well as designing the vessel, Rolls-Royce will supply the diesel electric main machinery, consisting of frequency controlled electric driven azimuth thrusters, super silent mounted transverse thrusters, DP2 dynamic positioning system, power electrical system, deck machinery, and the latest generation Acon automation and control system.
Helge Gjerde, Rolls-Royce, President Commercial – Marine, said, “We are delighted that Østensjø Rederi and DONG Energy have chosen the new Rolls-Royce UT 540 WP design against intense competition. As more wind farms are built further from shore and in more demanding conditions we see opportunities to use our extensive offshore experience to diversify into an exciting new market.”
The new build is a DP2 Service Operation Vessel with high station keeping capacities. 60 single cabins of high standard can accommodate up to 40 wind turbine technicians in addition to a marine crew of 20. A motion compensated gangway system with an adjustable pedestal will be installed to ensure safe operations and optimal uptime. Special areas and functions of the vessel are made in accordance with the charterer`s requirements. The 81.0 m long vessel, with a beam of 17.0 m, will work out of Grimsby, U.K.
“The Service Operating Vessel will be an important step to ensure safe and efficient operation of wind farms far from shore, starting with Race Bank windfarm, and we are convinced that DONG Energy will benefit from Østensjø Rederi’s long experience in conducting safe operations in an offshore environment,” says Jens Jakobsson, Senior Vice President for Wind Power Operations in DONG Energy
A floating energy plant, the LNG Hybrid Barge is designed to provide ships in port with clean power—an alternative to providing ship’s power by plugging into the city grid or producing electricity via generator sets or main engines. During winter season the LNG Hybrid Barge will be able to deliver heat to factories or to the central city heating system in addition to electricity.
BMS is the owner of the LNG Hybrid Barge and provides services to charter out the barge. BMS Managing Director Dirk Lehmann, says, “The LNG Hybrid Barge is the first flexible solution supplying clean LNG energy to cruise ships during summer season and providing the flexibility of generating electric energy and heat into a public grid system or industrial users during winter season. We see this advanced flexible solution as an opportunity for Rotterdam and other international ports.”
Primarily the LNG Hybrid Barge will support cruise ships moored in Rotterdam, traditionally key clients of KOTUG. KOTUG will move the LNG Hybrid Barge and will provide commercial, technical and operational management of the LNG Hybrid Barge.
KOTUG CEO Ard-Jan Kooren, says, “As a leading towage company and with our strong focus on innovative technical and environmental solutions, we strive for reducing our environmental footprint and encouraging our suppliers, clients, business partners and stakeholders to reduce their environmental impact. We are proud to be working with innovative partners like Becker Marine Systems and we look forward to making together a significant step in supporting our clients in a greener, safer and more efficient operation.”
This new, innovative concept and unique cooperation has also drawn significant attention from key players in the LNG market, like Cruiseport Rotterdam, Dutch National LNG Platform and Shell. Arjan Stavast, Shell’s Downstream LNG Business Development Manager for Europe says, “We see the LNG Hybrid Barge as a unique solution for the maritime industry. We will follow these developments closely as we do believe that the delivery of electricity through LNG is possible for (cruise) ships, factories and cities, while not having to invest heavily in additional electricity infrastructure.”
“We are delighted to learn about this initiative and are looking forward to welcome the LNG Hybrid Barge in Rotterdam,” says Mai Elmar, Executive Director of Cruise Port Rotterdam.
Gerrit van Tongeren, Chairman of the Dutch National LNG Platform, says the initiative “is another great and unique example of how (in their respective fields) leading maritime companies can work together in the entire LNG chain and together strive to get LNG introduced in the market and contribute to a cleaner and greener environment. We therefore follow and support this initiative and wish all parties good luck in achieving the objectives.”
Today, for example, Fred. Olsen Windcarrier International Ltd reported that it has been awarded a contract with by Adwen Bremerhaven GmbH for the transport and installation of 70 Adwen 5 MW wind turbine generators for the Wikinger Offshore Wind Farm project located in the Baltic Sea within the German exclusive economic zone in the Baltic Sea.
The contract will commence in the first quarter of 2017 and is expected to be completed during the third quarter of 2017. Adwen has the option to extend the contract for anywhere between 14 days to six months.
Fred Olsen Windcarrier will use either one of its wind turbine installation vessels Brave Tern and Bold Tern for the project.The contract includes the provision of installation technicians from Global Wind Service A/S , a company indirectly owned 51% by Fred Olsen Wincarrier’s parent companies, Bonheur ASA and Ganger Rolf ASA.
