Greening up the offshore wind support sector has taken a huge early step in Grimsby, with the first operational assignment completed with a vessel using hydrogenated vegetable oil as fuel.
Seacat Services is working for RWE on the Triton Knoll farm off the Lincolnshire coast.
A scheduled refit saw the vessel Seacat Enterprise undergo a series of modifications, following which she was loaded up with 8,000 litres of the 30 per cent blend for the trip back from the Great Yarmouth yard to the Humber and her first days at work.
The team has reported successful completion with all engines performing as expected.
Seacat’s managing director, Ian Baylis, said: “Seacat is committed to reducing our emissions profile as an organisation, and to setting the industry standard for environmental responsibility in the maritime supply chain. Updating Seacat Enterprise to the latest in high efficiency, high performance vessel design and running her effectively with HVO demonstrates to the industry what environmental improvements can be achieved now, with current technologies, while future solutions take shape.
“Up to 96 per cent of emissions from the offshore wind support sector are generated while our vessels are under charter, during which time the fuel choice is specified by the customer. As offshore project owners and investors look to reduce emissions from their supply chains, we are proactive in supporting our charterers as they address this added pressure – and projects like this one prove what can be achieved with our vessels today.”
HVO is developed from waste oils derived from agricultural products, giving it a markedly lower life cycle greenhouse gas emissions profile than traditional marine gas oil derived from fossil feedstocks.
It has allowed the Isle of Wight-headquartered operator to reduce CO2 emissions from the vessel’s transport and first operating days by 28 per cent.
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Seacat has three vessels working during the construction phase of Triton Knoll, sailing from Royal Dock. It has also worked on Orsted’s Race Bank and earlier wind farms operated and maintained out of the Grimsby cluster.
The successful trial will be flagged at a monthly meeting with the team, operations director Andy Calderbank-Link said, adding it provided a key step between current fossil fuel use and under development hybrid hydrogen and electric models.
There is a cost implication however, with 18p to 20p per litre more expensive.
Design modifications were specified by Seacat’s long-time vessel design partner, Chartwell Marine, and overseen by marine sustainability consultancy, Cedar Marine at Alicat yard.
Owen Preece, managing director and marine surveyor at Cedar, said: “Seacat’s commitment to maintaining a modernised fleet with the most current technologies available means Seacat Enterprise’s engines are well-suited to operating a broad range of distillate fuels with only minor modifications; in fact, HVO proves to be a closer specification to Seacat’s engines than traditional marine diesel.
“In keeping pace with leading vessel technologies, Seacat has unlocked a means to generate considerable emissions savings across its entire fleet through the use of significantly cleaner alternative fuels. The emphasis is now on wind farm owners and charterers to support this shift on a more widespread and permanent basis – which in turn will improve the business case for use of these fuels.”
The Triton Knoll test case is part of a range of efficiency measures Seacat is implementing across its operations and new build programme. In Q4 2020, Seacat placed two vessel orders for designs that use hull form and foil optimisation to significantly reduce carbon emissions while maintaining operational performance.