Blount Boats to build two Chartwell designed CTVs for Atlantic Wind Transfers

Vessels will be a specialized model of the Chartwell 24, modified to comply with American environmental regulations and operational conditions

North Kingston, R.I., headquartered offshore wind farm support company Atlantic Wind Transfers has placed an order with Warren, R.I., shipyard Blount Boats for two state-of the-art Chartwell 24 Crew Transfer Vessels (CTVs).

The boats have been designed by U.K.-based Chartwell Marine taking end user considerations into account to provide a CTV incorporating all the advances gained from operation in the European market, but tailored for the U.S.

The new vessels will be a specialized model of the Chartwell 24, modified to comply with American environmental regulations and operational conditions.

AVOIDING WHALES AND HANDLING ATLANTIC SEA CONDITIONS

In particular, the vessels will be compliant with legislation protecting the migration route of the protected Right Whale off the northeastern seaboard, with a specially adapted 65-foot hull. This hull has been further adapted to handle Atlantic sea conditions, mandating the highest standards in design and construction.

These modifications have been while retaining key attributes of the Chartwell 24, including a hull configuration that minimizes “wet deck slamming,” a large, step-free foredeck and superior transit performance.

“Based on our knowledge of the conditions off the coast of New England, we made modifications to our design to ensure optimal performance,” says Andy Page, Managing Director of Chartwell Marine. “Compliance with maritime regulations is only second to the safety of personnel, so we have ensured that Atlantic Wind Transfers and its clients will benefit from a vessel that ticks all of these boxes, while attaining the highest possible standards of safety and technical availability.”

“Our Crew Transfer Vessel company was the first to support offshore wind here in Rhode Island, with the first and only CTV currently operating in the United States. This is another major milestone for us as we expand our operation and aim to support the local supply chain along the East Coast of the United States,” says Charles Donadio, CEO of Atlantic Wind Transfers. “We have worked closely with Andy Page for the last seven years and, based on past experience along with conversations with established European CTV operators, we knew that the Chartwell 24 was the right vessel to deliver the standards of service our future clients will expect. We have full confidence the finished vessel from Blount Boats will be a class-leading, U.S.-flagged, Jones-Act compliant vessel.”

Blount Boats built the first ever U.S. flagged Crew Transfer Vessel for Atlantic Wind Transfers in 2015, the Atlantic Pioneer which, in turn was commissioned to service the first U.S. offshore wind farm off Block Island, R.I..

“As the offshore market grows, so too does the demand for American-made CTVs,” says Marcia Blount, President and Chief Financial Officer of Blount Boats. “Building vessels to Chartwell’s proven design enables us to couple European design expertise with American engineering and support the domestic supply chain as it goes from strength to strength.”