Integrated technology for heavy lift vessel

The US$13 million contract to equip the semi-submersible heavy lift crane vessel for Offshore Heavy Transport (OHT) will mark the operator’s entry into the offshore renewables and installation market.

“The heavy lift market has always presented a series of very specific challenges,” said Torgeir E. Ramstad, CEO of OHT.

“In working with Ulstein to design an innovative transport and installation vessel everyone has had to pull out all the stops, including defining the most efficient marine technology.”

Revolutionary

The innovative 216.3m, 48,000DWT vessel has been designed with a submersible main deck and a 3,000mt lifting capacity main crane specifically geared towards heavy substructures supporting offshore wind turbines.

Future-proofed in anticipation of the construction of the largest predicted wind turbine generators, the vessel will be capable of transporting and installing up to 10 x 1,500t ultra-large jacket foundations or 11 x 2,000t XXL monopiles, plus transition pieces.

The vessel with its large, open deck of more than 10,000m2 is well suited for subsea installations including oil pipelines and satellite wells, as well as decommissioning.

Kongberg’s’s integrated technology suite will include dynamic positioning, navigation, thruster control and automation systems, all enhanced by inbuilt measures to improve functionality and safety.

The delivery will be augmented by an electrical package including battery hybrid power and energy management systems, which will perpetrate a sharp reduction in fuel oil consumption, thereby driving down the vessel’s CO2 and NOx emissions.

Options exist for a further three vessels, but the first is currently under construction by China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI) and is scheduled to enter service in 2021.