Grimsby-headquartered CWind is launching the world’s first hybrid vessel into the offshore wind industry.
The surface effect ship, to be delivered in the middle of next year, has been taken on a long-term charter by Ørsted.
And while it will serve Dutch farms Borssele One and Two from the other side of the North Sea, the inward investing operator said the vision going forward is to bring the carbon footprint enhancing technology to its new home port.
CWind, part of Global Marine Group, has relocated its head office from Chelmsford, Essex, to become the anchor tenant within the Grimsby Offshore Centre base on Port of Grimsby East.
It was Ørsted’s first location, on the former Fish Dock Service Quay, before the £14 million East Coast Hub multi-phased development.
Ian Bryan, managing director of group business operations said: “We are delighted to announce the agreement with Ørsted, and look forward to delivering the world’s first Hybrid SES for them in 2020.
Our development of the vessel has been driven by listening to the market and our customers who want a greener, safer and more efficient crew transfer vessel to support their commercial and green objectives.”
The agreement covers an initial three-year firm charter with options available for a further two years. The vessel will be operating from Vlissingen, with the dual wind farm 23km off the Dutch coast.
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Through the combination of electric and diesel propulsion, when combined with the surface effect hull form and heave compensation technology, is able to operate in sea states of up to 2m while decreasing fuel burn and carbon dioxide emissions. It can deliver crew faster to these sites and with improved comfort, resulting in increased operation days offshore.
It was developed in partnership with ESNA, a ship design company based in Kristiansand, Norway. ESNA specialises in surface effect vessel development to deliver commercially competitive vessels with significant carbon reductions.
Naval architect and co-founder of ESNA, Trygve H Espeland, said: “The vessel design will accommodate further developments in hybrid propulsion and battery technology, ensuring it has the capability of being developed into a totally carbon-free solution in the future”.
The vessel will be built by Wight Shipyard Company, a leading 海角视频 boat builder.
It comes as the company behind the huge service operation vessels serving the wind farms further offshore from Grimsby has ordered four more vessels.
Østensjø Rederi has signed a letter of intent, with the new vessels to reduce greenhouse gases by 30 per cent and be prepared for the installation of zero emission technology.
Slightly longer than the Grimsby-registered Edda Mistral and Edda Passat, serving Hornsea One and Race Bank respectively, at 88.3m, they will be delivered in early 2022 onwards, accommodating up to 97 technicians and 23 marine crew.
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No contracts with operators are in place at this point, but Hornsea Two is emerging, with Ørsted the company having taken on Østensjo's first two ventures into the sector.
Chief executive Kenneth Walland said: "Østensjø Rederi is very excited about this newbuilding programme. Significant growth is expected in the offshore wind market over the next decades, and we are confident these CSOVs will be the optimal and preferred tool for our clients.
"Østensjø Rederi has been working in the offshore wind market since 2016, and with the delivery of our first two service operation vessels (SOV) in 2018, the company has established itself as a major player in this market. In addition to our existing vessels, both on long term contracts with Ørsted, the four newbuildings will further strengthen our market position in offshore wind."
The vessels, with commissioning added to the titles to underline the wider role, as seen from Grimsby, are equipped with a battery hybrid propulsion system, which together with other energy saving equipment will reduce emission of greenhouse gases significantly.
Together with partners, Østensjø Rederi is working on developing new technologies based on hydrogen as a safe and efficient energy source. The newbuildings are prepared for future installation of this novel technology, which will turn the CSOVs into zero emission vessels without compromising operational capabilities. It is being made possible thanks to Norwegian governmental support schemes for green shipping projects.
“We are proud to present these low-emission vessels to the market," Mr Walland added. "For Østensjø Rederi it is important to continuously push the development of environmentally friendly technologies. We firmly believe our new CSOVs will be the first zero emission vessels in this market."
The CSOVs are designed by Salt Ship Design, Norway in close co-operation with Østensjø. The vessels will again be built at Astilleros Gondán, northern Spain, "a decision founded upon a strong relationship following the previous construction of 13 vessels already delivered to Østensjø Rederi," Mr Walland aldded.
Clarksons Platou Securities and DNB Markets, a part of DNB Bank ASA, have been engaged as financial advisors in the project. Advokatfirmaet BAHR acts as legal advisor.
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