Chinese yard picks Ulstein design for offshore installation vessel

Dajin Heavy Industry has selected an Ulstein HX122 design with a U-STERN®, from Ulstein Design & Solutions BV in the Netherlands. The vessel is intended for the installation of monopiles, jacket foundations and offshore substations, required for today’s larger and more complex offshore wind projects.

The project marks a strategic move by the Chinese shipyard into offshore installations from manufacturing, logistics and transportation. Its objective is to develop a more integrated service in the offshore wind sector by reducing the number of parties in the supply chain.

The vessel, capable of installing 4XL monopiles, will be suitable for operations in oil and gas construction and decommissioning. It has a large working deck, advanced lifting capabilities, dynamic positioning, and Ulstein’s various hull innovations.

Its U-STERN design enables longitudinal storage and upending of monopiles along the vessel’s centreline, enabling installation operations to continue as the vessel heads into the prevailing sea. Together with the X-BOW, the vessel’s motions will be enhanced and its uptime maximised.

Feng Qi, Dajin vice president commented: “Offshore wind has entered a new development phase, and installation capacity is the core bottleneck for project delivery. The Ulstein HX122 with U-STERN project represents Dajin’s strategic layout to close the final link in offshore wind foundation delivery. We aim to develop high-performance, multi-functional installation platforms, enabling a shift from developers’ separate coordination of manufacturing, transportation and installation to Dajin’s one-stop delivery, to better support large-scale offshore wind development.”