Seaway 7 celebrates steel-cutting of next-generation WTIV
Seaway Ventus is scheduled to be delivered in mid 2023 (Source: Seaway 7)
At China Merchants Heavy Industry yard in Jiangsu, Norwegian offshore support group Seaway 7 celebrated the steel cutting ceremony for its next-generation wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV). The type GustoMSC NG-14000XL-G jack-up vessel, called Seaway Ventus, previously known by project name Vind1, is scheduled to be delivered in mid-2023.
Mr Torben Mikkelsen, Project Manager for the new build vessel said the new vessel will be amongst the world’s largest jack-up installation vessels, designed specifically to transport and install the next-generation offshore wind turbines and XL monopile foundations.
The vessel will be capable of installing wind turbine components in water depths of 65m, to a height of up to 182m above the sea and will feature a telescopic leg-encircling crane with a maximum lifting capacity of 2,500 tonnes in retracted mode and 1,600 tonnes in extended mode. A battery hybrid solution as well as an electrical and control system are said to reduce CO2 emissions by 20% compared to similar units. The WTiV will be prepared for hydrogen fuel cells to cut emissions even further.
The vessel’s inaugural project will be the transport and installation of wind turbine generators for Orsted’s Borkum Riffgrund 3 and Gode Wind 3 wind farms off Germany. First announced in October this year, the contract was signed in November and is subject to Orsted’s final investment decision in developing the wind farms.
