"You're gonna need a bigger crane..."
Offshore wind turbines are reaching new heights both literally (meters), and figuratively (megawatts). As the demand for larger turbines surges, so do the challenges faced by offshore installation contractors, which need to come up with bigger vessels, and, consequentially, bigger cranes for those vessels.When I took on the assignment to produce a piece focusing on heavy-lifting cranes and deck machinery for OE, I immediately thought of Huisman as a company best suited for coverage in this space…
ABS: U.S. Offshore Wind Vessel Demand Set to Soar
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.
Lamprell First Half Results Beat Expectations
Lamprell today announced its financial results for the first half of 2014, reporting results ahead of expectations due to strong operational performance and early results from savings initiatives, generating improved margins. Revenues rose by $125.7 million against H1 2013 as a result of the high H1 activity levels and phasing of construction activity during the period. According to Lamprell, successful rights issue and refinancing provides a strong financial platform and enables delivery of long-term growth strategy.
Zentech Acquires Derrick Barge 23, Renamed ZEE RIG 3
Zentech, Inc. has acquired the former Derrick Barge 23 and renamed it ZEE RIG 3. “We intend to upgrade the vessel in two phases, first for use as a crane barge with increased lifting capacity, and later as a much larger self-propelled jackup vessel for wind farm installation service,” said Zentech President Ramesh Maini. The vessel is being prepared for conversion work at a Gulf Coast shipyard. The vessel was purchased from Bohen Crane and Equipment Repair LLC. In its current configuration, ZEE RIG 3 is 400 Ft. long, 100 Ft. wide and has a hull depth of 29 Ft.
High-Performance Inline Thruster for Jackup Vessel
A 430 ft long, 128 ft wide jackup vessel for the erection of wind power stations is being fitted with the currently most powerful Inline Thruster from Voith Turbo Advanced Propeller Technologies. The Inline Thruster is rated at 1,500 kW and has an inner propeller diameter of 2,300 millimeters. Voith is systematically expanding its Thruster series. The Voith Inline Thruster/Voith Inline Propulsor (VIT/VIP) series starts with type 240-10, which means: an inner propeller diameter of 240 millimeters at an output of 10 kW. Previously, the VIT/VIP 850-300 was the most powerful unit in this class.
