GC Rieber orders two advanced SWATH-based WindKeeper SOVs

Written by Nick Blenkey
WindKeeper SWATH SOV

The 57 meter long hybrid diesel-electric WindKeeper SOV will be built to DNV class with Walk to Work and DPS(2) notations

Norway’s GC Rieber Shipping has placed an order with Cemre Shipyard in Turkey for two innovative WindKeeper Service Operation Vessels (SOVs) based on Small Water Area Twin Hull (SWATH) methodology and design. The first vessel is set for delivery in first quarter 2025 and the order includes options for a further two vessels.

The WindKeeper is designed to deliver improved operability, ultra-low fuel consumption and the option of fully electric operations in field. It is the result of a development program that GC Rieber began in 2016 putting, it says, “vast resources” into the project, which has involved close cooperation with key equipment suppliers, detailed simulations and several rounds of tank tests, latest at SINTEF, Norway in 2022.

WindKeeper has been developed to deliver two key value-adding attributes:

  • A substantial lower environmental footprint compared to monohull. The first generation WindKeeper will deliver substantial reduced emissions from day 1
  • Sea and station keeping performance widening the operational window in a safe and efficient manner

A stand-alone company, WindKeeper AS, wholly owned by GC Rieber Shipping, has been set up for the WindKeeper vessels. Total investment in WindKeeper is about EUR 110 million, with the project and vessels being fully financed through a combination of equity and debt financing. Sparebanken Vest and Eksfin have provided long term loan facilities of minimum EUR 51 million.

“In 2020, GC Rieber Shipping made a strategic decision to become a pure shipowner and project house with a focus on developing profitable and sustainable maritime projects,” says GC Rieber Shipping CEO Einar Ytredal. “We are proud to launch WindKeeper as our first project. The solidity of environmental and operational performances of WindKeeper are a testament to the strong technical capabilities within GC Rieber Shipping. Coming off close to a decade of downturn in the offshore industry, being able to finance and realize such a project on a stand-alone basis, further evidences the strong capacities of the project house. Our ambition is to build WindKeeper into a substantial and valuable player in the offshore wind industry,”

“We look forward to showing future clients and the market the exceptional performance of WindKeeper,” said GC Rieber Shipping CCO, Christoffer Knudsen “WindKeeper will drive down charterers daily costs and substantially reduce their emissions, improving their environmental footprint. We believe WindKeeper will be a preferred alternative for this decade. WindKeeper’s Charge2Work, zero emission alternative, further allows for the option of fully electric operations in field.”

“Our goal is to build innovative, environmentally friendly vessels for valuable players in the offshore industry together with our sustainable production and finance models,” said s Cemre Shipyard CFO Ömer Özeroğlu. “We are happy and proud to have entered into a contract for two challenging projects for Windkeeper AS, wholly owned by GC Rieber Shipping. Thank you very much for the professional team of Cemre Shipyard and GC Rieber Shipping for their great contribution and hard work to make this happen.

  • More on WindKeeper HERE
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