Farm Support News

UK-based offshore vessel designer Chartwell Marine has started the construction of its new Brevity Class crew transfer vessel (CTV) at the Diverse Marine shipyard, becoming the latest in its growing pipeline of new vessel builds to supply the global offshore wind market.Chartwell Marine’s current new build pipeline now exceeds 15 vessels across six local shipyards – with 14 offshore wind vessels launched and operational at major offshore wind farms, including two in U.S. waters.The company’s latest CTV entered build in March 2024…

Norwegian shipbuilder Vard has secured a contract for the design and construction of one tailor-made offshore wind commissioning service operation vessel (CSOV) for Norwind Offshore, with options for two additional vessels.Vard signed the contract with Navigare Capital Partners, a shareholder in Norwind Offshore.The new CSOV vessel, scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2026, is of VARD 4 19 design, developed by Vard Design in Ålesund in close collaboration with Norwind Offshore.The hull will be built in Vard Shipyards Romania – Braila and the outfitting…

ClassNK has awarded an approval in principle (AiP) for the design of a multi-functional floating offshore wind farm support vessel (MFSV) developed by K Line Wind Service, together with Japan Marine United Corporation, and Nihon Shipyard.The MFSV is designed to perform full moorings work scope for the installation of floating offshore wind turbines, including transportation, deployment and anchor tensioning of the mooring system.According to the companies, the vessel also features a multi-functional concept…

St. Johns Ship Building announced it has appointed Joe Rella as president, succeeding Jeffery Bukoski, who left the role at the close of 2023.Rella brings over four decades of U.S. Navy and commercial maritime experience to his new position at the Palatka, Fa. shipyard. He was previously president and COO at Austal USA and has held executive roles at International Marine and Industrial Applicators. Rella received his undergraduate degree in marine engineering from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and earned an MBA from Spring Hill College.

Turkey's Tersan Shipyard last week celebrated the steel cutting of NB1121, the second offshore wind farm support vessel being built for Acta Marine projects.The shipyard is building two DP2 construction service operation vessels (CSOV) powered with Methanol and MDO/HVO for the Dutch vessel owner. The construction of the first vessel kicked off in January.Designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions AS with the cooperation of Acta Marine, the two vessels are planned to serve in the offshore wind market.

St Johns Ship Building announced it has named Justin Smith to the position of Vice President of New Construction, tasked with leading the Palatka, Fla. shipyard's production and project management teams building various types of vessels in both steel and aluminum, including multiple series of crew transfer vessels (CTV) for the offshore wind industry.Smith has more than 40 years of experience in the maritime industry and has been part of the St Johns team since July 2022.“Justin…

US Watercraft, the commercial boatbuilding division of Waterline Systems, said it is building a new oyster farm support vessel for Matheson Oyster Co., a sustainable oyster farm located in Virginia.Matheson Oyster came to the Hubert, N.C. boatbuilder with a specific request: build a low-freeboard vessel that can hold position safely and travel quickly in the choppy waters of Chesapeake Bay.US Watercraft’s 26-foot aquaculture support vessel design is the result of a series of conversations with the Matheson Oyster crew, where the builder learned about Matheson's innovative farming methods.

Jörg Franzke, the newly appointed president of Scania U.S.A., Inc., is a company veteran, having been with the Scania group since 1995, building a wide experience in various positions such as Services, Truck Sales, R&D, Network Development and Quality Management. And prior to his current role, Franzke was the Head of Power Solutions at Scania Germany for 10 years.He weighs in on how Scania is helping customers meet their decarbonization agendas, and lays out challenges and opportunities on the path ahead.The commercial marine industry is seeing major changes in several key areas…

If awards were given for dominating the sustainable energy spotlight, offshore wind (OSW) would surely be in line for top honors.Consider:Big money: BOEM’s February sale of New York Bight offshore wind development rights drew a record $4.37 billion in developers’ bids. Not only is that real money, but just as critically, “This week’s offshore wind sale makes one thing clear: The enthusiasm for the clean energy economy is undeniable and it’s here to stay,” exclaimed Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.Off Broadway: In January…

Singapore-based offshore shipping, shipbuilding, and ship maintenance company Marco Polo Marine has partnered up with green tech ship design company Seatech Solutions International to co-develop two new specialized offshore wind service, operation, and maintenance vessel and the commissioning Service Operation Vessel (CSOV), for the global offshore wind farm market. When completed, these vessels will be the first SOV and CSOV designed in Asia, Marco Polo Marine said. Worth noting…

As of the end of January 2022, there were over 45 projects in development representing a $136 billion capital expenditure and $4.4 billion annual OPEX opportunity that are forecast to be brought on stream within this and early in the next decade.What a difference a year makes. This time last year there was still some uncertainty around the federal offshore wind permitting process, the timing of offshore wind projects and certainty for the supply chain.At the beginning of 2022 the situation is more positive.

Ben Reed is a mechanical engineer from the U.K. now leading New Zealand-based waterjet manufacturer HamiltonJet as managing director.Raised in Shropshire, Reed graduated from Loughborough University of Technology in 1995 and later became a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institute of Mechanical Engineering. He’s worked for a U.K. gas utility company developing natural-gas-powered engines; Ford Motor Company as a Systems Analyst, and 17 years for Caterpillar UK in diesel engine and transmission development for off-highway machinery and military products…

At Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld, a new model in the Damen Shoalbuster range -- the ultra-shallow Shoalbuster 3514 SD -- was christened Brutus by Mrs Mandy Heere-van Eijk, on behalf of tug and workboat company, Herman Sr.The Shoalbuster 3514 SD measures is 35 x 14 m with a free deck space of 150 sq. m. The vessel has a draft t of 2.85m at full tank capacity and just 2.45m at 50%, allowing it access to waters inaccessible to other vessels of a similar size and capability. Four Caterpillar C32 ACERT engines deliver a total of 3…

As part of his Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad (EO 14008)—issued on the first day he took office—President Biden made significant commitments to renewable energy. These commitments include collaborating with multiple federal agencies in the United States and promoting critical industry support for the acquisition of electric vehicles for the federal fleet, as well as rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, the landmark international agreement signed in 2015 to limit global warming.

Australian offshore vessel operator MMA Offshore has secured three new contracts in the offshore wind market in Taiwan.The contracts are for the vessels MMA Pride, MMA Crystal, and MMA Responder."These three contracts, with firm periods totaling 270 days, increase the Company’s contracted revenue by an aggregate total of approximately A$7.0 million. These contracts also provide for an additional option period totaling 118 days," MMA Offshore said.The three MMA vessels will mobilize to Taiwan to provide a range of offshore wind farm support services.“MMA Pride” will provide accommodation and walk to work services supporting turbine works at the Changhua wind farm…

Integrated Wind Solutions, a newly formed offshore wind service company owned by Norway's Awilhelmsen investment group, is eyeing a private placement of new shares in the company in connection with a listing on Euronext Growth Oslo, aiming to raise up to $89 million.Integrated Wind Solutions describes itself as a company that aims to be a leading offshore wind service player by integrating service operation vessels with engineering and manpower services in the windfarm’s construction and operations phase.

It's no longer news that the U.S. is set to become the next big offshore wind market, with an IEA 2019 report forecasting 40 GW of installed offshore wind capacity in the country by 2040, which will require a $100 billion investment.To meet this expected growth, both in the fixed-bottom wind farms and the floating wind farms, the U.S. market will require a large amount of wind farm support vessels of various types, with the current fixed-bottom wind turbine installation fleet non-existent, and the foreign-flagged vessels not an option, for the most part.

U.S. offshore wind crew transfer company Atlantic Wind Transfers (AWT) said its second Jones Act crew transfer vessel (CTV) Atlantic Endeavor was launched at the end of December.Designed by U.K. firm Chartwell Marine and built by Blount Boats in Warren, R.I., the new aluminum catamaran spent three days undergoing sea trials and U.S. Coast Guard inspections prior to deliver to Dominion Energy to support its two-turbine Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Farm (CVOW) pilot project 27…

Offshore energy support vessel operator Seacat Services has taken delivery of Seacat Weatherly, the first of two new crew transfer vessels (CTV) ordered from the Diverse Marine shipyard in Cowes, U.K.Handed over despite the challenges and pressures created by the current coronavirus lockdown, Seacat Weatherly completed sea trials and has gone straight on to her first charter contract at a major U.K. offshore wind project.Seacat Weatherly and its sister vessel Seacat Rainbow currently…

UK-based offshore wind farm support vessel operator, Seacat Services has ordered two more Chartwell 24 crew transfer vessels.The two vessels – to be named Seacat Sceptre and Seacat Sovereign – are designed by Chartwell Marine, and will be the first equipped with a new foil optimization and stability system (FOSS) designed by BAR Technologies. This system promises to enhance vessel stability, improving comfort for offshore wind technicians, and create substantial operational efficiency gains.According to the press statement…

Naval architecture and marine engineering firm BMT said it has been awarded a contract to conduct industry studies to advance the design of the next generation of U.S. Navy Auxiliary General Ocean Surveillance Ship (T-AGOS(X)).The industry studies address technical solutions and design tradeoffs, provide recommendations to improve producibility and affordability, and include technical reviews of the Navy’s evolving ship design, said prime contractor BMT, who will partner with U.S.

A bow extension will allow Cape Henry Launch Services' workboat Delta Escape to push up against offshore wind turbines to support the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) pilot program off Virginia Beach.Naval architecture and marine engineering firm DLBA, a division of Gibbs & Cox, said it was recently engaged to complete the structural design for the project.The bow was built out of aluminum, and added on to the existing aluminum hull structure. The DLBA team created the push…

Triumph Subsea Services has signed a letter of intent with Infrastrata for the construction of offshore wind farm development vessels at Infrastrata's Harland & Wolff Shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland.The letter of intent envisions the construction of two Windfarm Development Vessels ("WDV) each of which will have a length of 200 meters and a beam of 35 meters.Under the terms of the LoI, InfraStrata's subsidiary, Harland & Wolff - a shipyard that built the Titanic - would be responsible for the build…