Shipbuilders focus on renewables market

One of Europe’s most successful shipyard groups is to build on spec a trio of crew–change vessels for the offshore renewable energy market.

The 24–passenger Fast Crew Supplier (FCS) 2710 Hybrid boats are based on Dutch company Damen’s highly successful axe bow concept, and will be built and held in stock at its Antalya yard in Turkey. The aim is to enable rapid final equipping and delivery to customers in a hurry who require vessels with zero–emissions capability to enable emissions–free operations in wind parks and harbours.

Building for the off– the–shelf market is not new to Damen. Fast and stable crew transfer vessels able to operate in rough seas have become a necessity in offshore energy production, and Damen is a world leader.

Work leading to the wave–piercing axe bow started in the 1980s. The forefoot is deep and narrow, and the freeboard relatively high with little flare, so the bow profile resembles an axe. The first axe bow designs were monohulls, but twin–axe catamaran–style craft soon followed.

Vessels for crew and supplies must be versatile, stable and sturdy, to manoeuvre in between turbine towers and offer safe and fast transfers.

The catamaran design offers great stability together with a lot of deck space. The slender, sharp and deep bows slice through seas.

This latest Damen cat development also features a two–speed gearbox, which improves close–quarters handling, especially when holding station against the crew transfer docking points of a wind turbine.

The off–the–shelf trio are hybrids and can run on diesel or switch to electric propulsion. However, Damen is also working on the all–electric E–FCS 2710. The hybrids will be ready next year; the allelectric version in 2024.

Meanwhile, four years late, DEME’s new DP3 class offshore installation vessel Orion is in the final stages of commissioning, following a delivery trip from Bremerhaven to its base near the Dutch port of Vlissingen.

Two years were lost as a result of a major mishap in 2020 when the 145m lifting jib of its 5,000– tonne Liebherr crane collapsed during fitting out in the German port of Rostock. The 216.5m ship had been built by the COSCO Qidong shipyard in China, where the basic vessel was launched in November 2018.

Orion is said to be the first vessel of its kind fuelled by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and diesel. In addition to the dual–fuel engines, machinery provider Wärtsilä provided its LNGPac fuel storage and supply, and propulsion systems.

Even without the crane collapse, this has been a slow–burn project.

DEME placed its first Wärtsilä order in Q4 2016, followed by a second in February 2017. The Orion is powered by four nine–cylinder Wärtsilä 46DF dual–fuel electric propulsion engines, and two six–cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF dual–fuel engines. Total installed power capacity was stated to be 44,180kW at the time the orders were placed.

Deck space has been maximised to provide exceptionally high transport and load capacity. Anticipating the next generation of super– large wind turbines, the vessel is designed to take the heaviest monopiles, jackets, power heads and other components and structures in a single shipment.

Orion is to be deployed by DEME’s subsidiary GeoSea, and will also be available to the oil and gas market, for construction and decommissioning.

Orion is not the only new–build DEME is involved in. Last month, the Green Jade DP3 heavy lift and installation vessel was named at the CSBC shipyard in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. It is being built for the CDWE consortium, of which DEME and the shipyard are members.

“Both ‘Orion’ and ‘Green Jade’ bring a game– changing installation concept to the offshore energy market,” said DEME in a statement.

“They have an unrivalled combination of load capacity, impressive lifting heights and green technology. With a 4,000– tonne crane capacity, this pioneering vessel will enable CDWE and its customers to transport multiple jackets and foundation components for the new giant wind turbines in a single shipment, making it extremely cost–effective.”

Like Orion, Green Jade is fitted with a Wärtsilä dual–fuel main machinery package, with a “Green Passport and Clean Design” notation.

For the time being, it is staying in Asia–Pacific, as it is lined up for work on the Hai Long and Zhong Neng offshore wind farms.

SLOW–BURN: Already four years late, DEME’s Orion vessel is finally in the final stages of commissioning.