WINDFARM PROJECTS SPUR NEWBUILD BUSINESS

Commanding a contract value of US$330 million, a jack-up type wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) equipped with a 2,600t-capacity crane has been ordered from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering by Monaco-based Eneti. Formerly Scorpio Bulkers, Eneti has stipulated delivery during the third quarter of 2024 and has specified design provision for future operation on LNG or ammonia.

Appended to the order is an option on a second vessel at the same price, net of currency adjustments. Eneti’s drive into the renewables market, shifting from its forebear’s dry bulk focus, also embraces a plan for a Jones Act-compliant, necessarily US-built WTIV.

The NG-16000X design developed by GustoMSC has been nominated for the Daewoo newbuild, and the contribution of Dutch technology to the project also extends to the huge, leg encircling crane, to be supplied by Huisman Equipment.

The WTIV will be 148m in length and 56m wide, and will have the capability to simultaneously transport five offshore wind generators up to the 20MW turbine size, and to place the units in depths up to 65m. The ship will use seven thrusters and GPS for precise positioning over the installation point before deploying the jacking system and commencing the placement of the turbine elements.

The plan to facilitate a switch to alternative fuels at some future stage is especially significant in its identification of ammonia as a strong contender. Compared to some of the other options, ammonia is viewed in certain quarters as a more suitable choice in the post-carbon era for logistic and design reasons, and is also held to be cheaper to produce than synthetic carbon fuels.

In reference to the Daewoo contract, Eneti’s chairman and CEO Emanuele A.Lauro said “This vessel will have the advanced lifting capabilities and energy efficiency that offshore wind developers require, not just today but well into the next decade.”

Mr Lauro also revealed that the New York Stock Exchange-listed company was laying the groundwork for a WTIV to address the US mandate for offshore wind development: “The growing calls for a safe, efficient, American-constructed and American-operated asset have been clear and loud. We are intent on providing a state-of-the-art solution to our customers so that they can comply with the Jones Act as they bring renewable energy to the US consumer.”

Earlier this year, Dominion Energy booked a jack-up WTIV of the NG-16000X-SJ type from Texas shipbuilder Keppel AmFels. The first Jones Act newbuild of its kind, the vessel will measure 144m x 56m, and will board a 2,200t-capacity main crane. Domiciled at Schiedam, near Rotterdam, designer GustoMSC is US-owned, by way of Houston-headquartered National Oilwell Varco (NOV).

The Dominion newbuild is scheduled to be operational at the end of 2023, and is expected to be homeported in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. Schemes have been put forward by the energy industry for a total of more than 28GW of windfarm capacity to be sited off the US eastern seaboard in the next decade, calling for major investments in next-generation, Jones Act WTIVs.