Platform Technology News

SolarDuck, Green Arrow Capital and New Developments have agreed to collaborate on the development of a floating photovoltaic (PV) farm integrated with a floating offshore wind farm.The Corigliano offshore hybrid wind-solar farm will be located in the gulf of Taranto off the coast of Corigliano-Rossano in Calabria. The farm is planned to feature 28 floating wind turbines for a wind capacity of 420MW in addition to a 120MW PV farm for a combined 540MW of capacity. The PV farm alone…

Danish offshore vessel company Maersk Supply Service has installed six mooring lines and six anchors for the DemoSATH floating wind project at the BIMEP open sea test site in the Biscay Bay off the coast of Armintza, Spain.SATH Technology is based on a concrete platform concept with a plug-and-play Single Point Mooring, the same technology used for FPSOs. This anchoring system allows an easy connection so the platform can be disconnected and taken ashore for O&M. The platform can rotate freely around this single point like a weathervane…

“Synergy” is an overused word. But in the case of the “Advanced Naval Technology Exercises” that are held around the country, ANTX is truly a sum greater than its parts.ANTXs are conducted by the Naval Research & Development Establishment (NR&DE) and hosted at the various Naval Warfare Centers to demonstrate emerging technologies and innovations aimed at solving Navy and Marine Corps problems and addressing mission priorities and gaps. They are not so much exercises, which usually denotes training, but more like technology demonstrations.

Delta Offshore Energy (DOE), a company developing an offshore gas to power project in Vietnam, has signed a technology license agreement with Stena Power & LNG Solutions.Under the agreement, Stena will grant DOE a license to use its Jetty-Less LNG receiving and regas technology for the offshore LNG to power project located in the Bac Lieu Province in Southern Vietnam.DOE will employ Stena’s floating Jetty-Less Autonomous Transfer System (ATS) and Self-installing Regas Platform…

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has announced the appointment of Ingrid Solvberg as Director for the Norwegian Sea and Barents Sea, replacing Bente Nyland.According to a note from NPD, Sølvberg was appointed by the King in Council on 11 October. The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy has not yet set the date for the transition.The director general position in the NPD is posted as a fixed term engagement of six years, with the option of an additional six-year period. Bente Nyland’s second term period will expire at the end of the year.She congratulates Ingrid Sølvberg on her new job saying: “This is one of the most exciting jobs in the petroleum activities. I’ve looked forward to going to work every single day.

A group of offshore wind industry members that includes Equinor, Magellan Wind and Principle Power have launched an offshore wind group in California.The Offshore Wind California (OWC) said it is  committed to providing industry expertise, innovative solutions, and a dedicated voice for offshore wind in California.OWC is poised to lead the promotion of responsible and sustainable deployment of offshore wind power in the state's energy system.California is well-positioned to break out as the next investment hot spot for America's booming offshore wind industry, which is taking off with more than 22 gigawatts (GW) in commitments by East Coast states and $70 billion in supply chain spending by 2030…

The sustainable energy solutions provider Vestas Wind Systems A/S has received a 34 MW order for the Haramsfjellet wind project on the island of Haramsøya in western Norway.The Danish manufacturer has developed a solution to fit the site’s wind conditions that includes eight V136-4.2 MW turbines and a long-term service contract to optimise energy production for the lifetime of the project in a high wind location."With a robust design for tough wind sites, the turbine is well-suited for the challenging climatic conditions that are commonly found on Norway’s western coastline," said a press release.The order is placed by Finnish-based Taaleri Energia investing via their SolarWind II fund in the project that will have an annual production of about 112 GWh…

Hamburg-based Buss Group has acquired SSC Wind from Wildeshausen with an aim to expand its services in the offshore and onshore wind markets.In future, the company will operate on the market under the company name Buss Wind Services GmbH.With this strategic step, Buss completes its portfolio in the wind sector. To date, Buss had focused on port logistics for offshore wind farms in the North Sea and Baltic Sea.Buss offers this service both in its own offshore terminals in Eemshaven (Netherlands), Sassnitz and Stade (Germany) as well as at third-party terminals.In addition, Buss provides extensive services in the onshore wind sector for the maintenance and repair of rotor blades.

Happy 80th birthday Maritime Reporter & Engineering News! Eighty years is a significant publishing and business accomplishment!Birthdays always cause a look back. An 80-year review starts in 1939, the close of one very challenging decade, the start of events still reverberating today. History’s most important history is contained in the last 80 years.Energy dominated every one of those decades. Consider energy use, say, starting after World War II, from 1950 to 1975. There was power for everything…

Globecomm, one of the leading providers of maritime connectivity services, has installed a complete communications solution on MV Baltic, the latest newbuild to join the Global Seatrade fleet. To meet demanding connectivity needs, Globecomm delivered its global Ku-band VSAT solution with VoIP services, an Iridium Pilot L-Band system and KNS S8 to enable flat fee internet access and live TV services onboard the new heavy cargo roll-on/roll-off vessel ship. "We congratulate Global Seatrade on the recent launch of the MV Baltic, and are delighted the project offered an opportunity to continue our close partnership," said Malcolm McMaster, president of Globecomm's Maritime division.

Lloyd’s Register (LR), a  global engineering, technical and business services organization has added to its portfolio of advanced data, digital and software solutions with the acquisition of Seasafe Marine Software & Computation (Seasafe). An unexpected incident, such as a grounding, a collision or an explosion, can result in complex technical challenges, all requiring a fast and effective response. Seasafe specializes in on-board loading and stability software to help customers manage the stability of vessels and offshore structures, from passenger ships, heavy-lift vessels and FPSOs to semi-submersibles and jack-up rigs. LR’s ship emergency response service (SERS)…

Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT), a designer of membrane containment systems for the maritime transportation and storage of liquefied natural gas (LNG), via its U.S. subsidiary GTT North America, announced the signing of an agreement with Conrad Shipyard for the future production of LNG membrane tanks using GTT's technology. The signing of an agreement initiates the process of training and preparing Conrad Shipyard, a major U.S. shipbuilder, to offer GTT's membrane containment technologies for LNG storage, transportation and fuel tanks. The training process will include the construction of a membrane tank model to exhibit Conrad Shipyard's manufacturing and installation expertise.

If and when Brazil gets its maritime act together, oh what a shipbuilding market force it could be. The modern Brazilian shipbuilding industry was established in the 1960s, induced by a broad and effective governmental policy. The 1960s and 1970s saw the rise of the merchant marine and shipbuilding industry in Brazil. The creation of the “Merchant Marine Fund” and the “Tax for the Merchant Marine Renewal,” in 1958, together with other specific targets set by the government at that time, made investments available to the shipbuilding industry and for the development of the merchant marine in general. Counting on such incentives, new shipyards such as Ishibras and Verolme were built…

Imtech has received new orders for new and existing ships from the Royal Netherlands and Belgian navies worth over $37.6m. Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (Vlissingen, the Netherlands), builder of the new logistic support ship Karel Doorman of the Royal Netherlands Navy, granted Imtech the contract for the design, production, delivery and implementation of various technological solutions on board this Joint Support Ship (JSS). Imtech also obtained orders for a technological upgrade of the Royal Netherlands Navy's supply vessel 'Hr. Ms. Amsterdam' dating from 1995 and a technological upgrade of two M-class frigates owned by the Belgian Navy. The new logistic support ship Karel Doorman, also called a Joint Support Ship (JSS), will replace the supply ship Hr. Ms.

ABS is launching an integrated project team structure to facilitate the delivery of its classification services, with Kerr-McGee Corporation’s recently sanctioned “Constitution” truss spar slated as the first to benefit from the enhanced process. Destined for Green Canyon Block 680 in 5,000 ft. of water, Kerr-McGee will use the “Constitution” spar to develop its 100-percent owned field in the Gulf of Mexico. The project development strategy—internal to ABS—is supported with a proprietary technology tool, “02E” or “Engineering 2000,” to provide global, real-time electronic review of the customer’s drawings and improved project control.

Intergraph Corporation and Det Norske Veritas Software (DNVS) have signed a letter of intent to complete a software licensing and distribution agreement. The proposed five-year, multi-million dollar agreement includes collaboration by the two companies in the shipbuilding, offshore and plant design markets. Under terms of the letter of intent, DNVS will market and distribute Intergraph's next-generation shipbuilding design applications to the shipbuilding industry. Additionally, Intergraph will license its SmartPlant(R) platform technology to DNVS. Intergraph and DNVS will work together to combine their respective engineering and lifecycle data management applications.

Albacore Research Ltd. (ARL), announced ShipConstructor's support for AutoCAD(R) 2006 next generation design software from Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK), the world's leading software and services company for the building, manufacturing, infrastructure, digital media and wireless data services fields. AutoCAD 2006 software allows users to create, manage and share design information faster, to compete and win. ShipConstructor2005 is fully compatible with AutoCAD 2006. The new features offered by the latest release of AutoCAD will significantly improve the productivity of ShipConstructor users. ShipConstructor is the 3D product modeling and Product Data Management (PDM) system for the design and fabrication of ships and offshore structures…