Van Oord Orders 'Green' Cable Layer for Offshore Wind Operations

Dutch offshore contractor Van Oord has ordered a "green" cable-laying vessel from the Norwegian shipbuilder Vard. The ship will be built in Tulcea, Romania and Brattvaag, Norway for scheduled delivery in 2023.

The vessel, equipped with the latest sustainable technologies, and expected to be fully operational in 2023, is targeted for deployment in the burgeoning offshore wind market. 

The new DP2 vessel will be based on the VARD 9 02 design and equipped with a below-deck cable carousel and a second carousel on deck, with a total cable-carrying capacity of 8,000 tonnes. The vessel will mainly be deployed on inter-array grid and export cables of offshore wind projects. The vessel will also be capable of installing high voltage direct current cables.

"The new vessel has been designed with the latest sustainable technologies in order to reduce the carbon footprint during operations and port standby. Apart from the possibility to run on bio fuel, this hybrid vessel has future fuel-ready engines with built-in flexibility to anticipate e-fuels," Van Oord said.

According to the company, the vessel will have a large battery pack, a shore supply connection, and "a state-of-the-art" energy management system. 

"This sustainable set-up will result in a more energy-efficient vessel in order to reduce CO2, NOx and SOx emissions," the company said.

"Van Oord is committed to reducing CO2 emissions to become carbon-neutral by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement. This investment emphasizes our commitment to net-zero emissions," said Pieter van Oord, CEO of Van Oord. 

From the new Dutch-flagged vessel, Van Oord will be able to operate its cable trenchers, too. It will be 130 meters long, and will have 28 meters across the beam.