Vessel Retrofits Could Accelerate U.S. Offshore Wind Development
The U.S. Administrationâs strategy to fast-track offshore wind development is exciting for overseas shipbuilders and service providers in the field. Joint ventures meeting Jones Act requirements will support accelerating development. Some question, however, whether ambitious 2030 targets can actually be achieved.Ulstein group is a front runner. The Norwegian-based company has already provided the design for a rock installation vessel now under construction for a joint venture between Houston-based Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (GLDD) and Netherlands based Van Oord.
CBED's Wind Innovation SOV Extends Stay at German Wind Farm Project
Offshore accommodation company CBED has won a contract extension for its Wind Innovation service operations vessel Wind Innovation.Back in May, the company secured a contract for the vessel at the DanTysk and Sandbank offshore wind farms in the German North Sea.Now, the extension has been secured with the wind farm owner, a joint venture between Vattenfall Europe Windkraft GmbH and Stadtwerke München GmbH Vattenfall, securing full activity for the SOV, Wind Innovation, from Q1 to Q4 2023.
CBED to Provide Accommodation Vessel for German North Sea Wind Farm Projects
Offshore accommodation company CBED has won a contract for its Wind Innovation vessel on the DanTysk and Sandbank offshore wind farms in the German North Sea."With the operations and maintenance service contract with DanTysk Sandbank Offshore Wind GmbH & Co. KG, a joint venture between Vattenfall Europe Windkraft GmbH and Stadtwerke München GmbH., CBED secures full activity until Q4 2022 for its walk-to-work service operation vessel, Wind Innovation," CBED said.Ahead of starting its German North Sea contractâŚ
Vattenfall Picks Island Offshore Vessel for Offshore Wind W2W in Germany
Norwegian offshore vessel operator Island Offshore, mostly known for its offshore vessel services in the Norwegian oil and gas industry, has recently won a walk-to-work contract with Vattenfall in the offshore wind sector in Germany.Island Offshore said the contract was an important one and will see its vessel Island Diligence deployed at Vattenfall-operated DanTysk and Sandbank offshore wind farms in the German part of the North Sea.Island Diligence will provide accommodation and transfer of technicians via the vesselâs gangway solution, to the wind turbines.
Subsidy-Reliant Offshore Wind Takes Cue from Big Oil
From a helicopter, it looks like just another North Sea oil rig, a grey cube supported by massive yellow pillars, 90 kilometres (56 miles) off western Denmark. But the DanTysk facility is the world's first accommodation platform for offshore wind, which is borrowing techniques and labour from the crisis-hit oil sector as it tries to cut costs and end an addiction to state subsidies. The wind industry is moving further offshore and into the deeper waters tamed long ago by oil companies to increase scale and capture stronger and more constant winds. "There's a lot of new-generation technology in the offshore wind industry, but when I'm out thereâŚ
Germanyâs First Accommodation Platform for Offshore Wind Farms
DNV GL, the worldâs largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has awarded Vattenfall with a final statement of compliance for its offshore accommodation platform. This is the first offshore platform in the North Sea to host up to 50 operation and maintenance staff members working at the nearby DanTysk offshore wind farm. As the offshore wind farm is 90km away from the nearest harbour, project developer Vattenfall designed the unique offshore structure to enable staff to live independently close to the wind farm without any outside support for up to three weeks. The offshore wind accommodation platform sets unique challenges to the certification process.
Van Oord to Acquire Activities of Ballast Nedam Offshore
Van Oord has reached agreement on the acquisition of the activities of Ballast Nedam Offshore. The acquisition consists of the assets of Ballast Nedam Offshore, the dedicated EPCI staff (Engineering, Procurement, Contracting and Installation), heavy lift installation vessel Svanen and the Westermeerwind project (144 MW). The activities will be integrated into Van Oordâs Offshore Wind Projects business unit. The acquisition will strengthen Van Oordâs leading position in the offshore wind market for north west Europe. This acquisition is part of Van Oordâs strategy to expand its Offshore Wind Projects business unit. The demand for energy of the growing world population is rising constantly.
Two More Damen Twin Axe Catamarans for SeaZip
Damen Shipyards and SeaZip Offshore Service signed another contract for two Damen Fast Crew Suppliers (FCS) 2610 at Wind Energy in Hamburg. The two new vessels, to be named SeaZip 3 and SeaZip 4, will be mobilized in transporting personnel and small quantities of freight to North Sea offshore wind farms. The new orders follow the delivery last year of two FCS 2610 â named SeaZip 1 and SeaZip 2 â that have been performing successfully at the NordseeOst and DanTysk offshore wind farms in the German Bight.
Dutch Team Installs Huge Power Socket in the North Sea
A combination of three Dutch offshore companies realized a unique operation in the North Sea, installing a giant âpower socketâ, the SylWin alpha platform. Siemens commissioned Seaway Heavy Lifting to perform an unusual operation that in turn called in the assistance of maritime service provider Dockwise and engineered heavy lifting and transport specialist Mammoet. Weighing 14,000 metric tons, the 83-meter long, 56-meter wide and 26-meter high SylWin alpha platform, built by Siemens, is the largest in its kind.
L-3 SAM for DanTysk Wind Project
L-3 SAM Electronics won a contract for the supply and installation of the electrical system package on an accommodation platform being built in Kiel, Germany, by Nobiskrug of Rendsburg as part of the DanTysk offshore wind farm project jointly developed by Stadtwerke München (SWM) and Vattenfall. L-3 SAM Electronicsâ scope of supply for the 2,500-sq.-m. platform covers provision of low-voltage switchgear and uninterrupted power supplies inclusive of cabling, all internal communicationsâŚ
L-3 SAM Supplies Wind Farm Electronics
L-3 SAM Electronics announced that it has been commissioned by steel contractor Bladt Industries A/S of Aalborg, Denmark, to outfit transition pieces for the EnBW Baltic 2 wind farm due to become operational this year. âThe EnBW Baltic 2 project is the second major turnkey wind farm contract to have recently been awarded to L-3 and further underscores the effectiveness of our Marine & Power Systems (M&PS) wind energy working group in leveraging its broad capabilities to meet customer needs,â said Juergen Meyer-Pepel, senior vice president of L-3 SAM Electronics.
L-3 SAM to Supply Electrical Package for DanTysk Wind Project
L-3 SAM Electronics announced today that together with its associated L-3 companies, it has been awarded a major contract for the supply and installation of the electrical system package on an accommodation platform being built in Kiel, Germany, by Nobiskrug of Rendsburg as part of the DanTysk offshore wind farm project jointly developed by Stadtwerke München (SWM) and Vattenfall. The accommodation platform for the new wind farm is designed to permanently support O&M personnel for DanTysk with fully equipped individual living quarters that will include general communal and leisure areasâŚ
IMCA Meeting to Focus on Offshore Renewables
Offshore renewable energy will be very much on the agenda when the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) holds the first ever meeting of its long-established Europe & Africa Section in Germany. With speakers from Technip, the German Shipowners Association, German Shipbuilders, Workships Contractors, Seaway Heavy Lifting, Bluewater, RWE, Vattenfall, ER Offshore and Global Maritime the meeting on Thursday, November 28 at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Hamburg is open to members and nonmembers alike.
Liberia-flag OSV Detained for MLC Breach
The offshore supply vessel 'Atlantic Carrier' was detained for 24 hours in Esbjerg, as the Danish Maritime Authority discovered during a port control inspection that the crew had not been provided with employment contracts as required by the recently introduced Maritime Labour Convention (MLC). "It is satisfying to see that the MLC requirements are incorporated in the Danish authorityâs port state control. The seafarers' employment is quite basic. The contract is a piece of paper that states under which conditions he or she is employed.
Gearing Up For U.S. Offshore Wind Power
Next year, developers hope to start building offshore wind turbines in the U.S., which is already a leader in on-land wind generation. As turbines spin off the coast in a dozen other countries, particularly the UK, Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany, global offshore wind capacity has expanded nearly six-fold since 2006. Most of these installations are in shallow water though winds are stronger out further. If the U.S. is to have offshore turbines, many residents want them distant enough so they canât be seen or heard.
ABB Azipods for Korea-built WIV Vessels
Eight Azipod C compact propulsion systems installed on 'Pacific Orca' and 'Pacific Osprey', the worldâs largest wind farm installation vessels (WIV). The Azipod systems were delivered to the Samsung Shipyard in Korea from ABBâs new Azipod factory in Shanghai, China, established in 2011 to build the low power Azipod units. The new plant focuses on production of CO and CZ Azipod units, which range between 1.3 - 4.5 megawatts (MW) and 3.3 - 4.7 MW output, respectively. The factory helps ABB to meet fast-growing demand for high-end vessels from Chinese shipyards andâŚ
Keppel FELS on Track to Deliver Offshore Wind Turbine Installer
Keppel to deliver one of the worldâs largest multi-purpose offshore wind turbine installers. Keppel FELS say they are on track to deliver Seafox 5, one of the largest and most advanced multi-purpose offshore wind turbine installers of its kind to the Seafox Group, ahead of time and with an impressive safety record. Built to Keppel's proprietary Multi-Purpose Self-Elevating Platform (MPSEP) design, Seafox 5 is a new-generation offshore wind turbine installation vessel that can withstand harsh offshore environmental conditions all year round in the deeper waters of the North Sea. It has been chartered to the joint-venture company of Aarsleff Bilfinger Berger (ABJV) Dan Tysk to install offshore wind foundations in the 288 megawatt (MW) Dan Tysk wind farm in the German Sector of the North Sea.
Offshore Wind Farm Transformer Platform â Nordic Yards Steel-cutting
The first steel blank cut has been made at Nordic's Warnemünde shipyard on the largest offshore transformer platform of its type currently under construction worldwide. Wind Farm transformer platform SylWin alpha will be installed west of Sylt to provide the grid connection for DanTysk and Butendiek offshoreâ¨wind farms. In accord with the date announced at the contract signing in February this year, the first steel blank cut was made in the presence of representatives of the client, Siemens Energy, and the end customer, TenneT, at the Rostock-Warnemünde yard.
Keppel & Seafox Groupâs MPSEP SEAFOX 5 Secures First Job
The KFELS MPSEP vessel will be deployed for foundation works at DanTysk in the German Sector of the North Sea, starting 4Q2012. Keppel FELS Limited (Keppel FELS) is pleased to announce that a contract from the joint-venture Aarsleff Bilfinger Berger (ABJV) Dan Tysk, worth in excess of EUR 35 million, has been secured for SEAFOX 5, the KFELS Multi-Purpose Self-Elevating Platform (MPSEP) wind turbine installation vessel owned and managed with the Seafox Group. The customer ABJV DanTysk has an option to extend the charter by an additional 90 days. Keppel FELS is on track to complete the construction of SEAFOX 5 in the second half of 2012.