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OHT prepare to perform full wind farm installation

By: Matthew White 17/07/2018 Offshore Heavy Transport

General Turbines Vessels Windfarms

OHT has signed a contract with China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI) in Jiangsu, China, for the construction of a 48,000dwt semi-submersible offshore wind farm foundation installation vessel, with options to extend the program with up to three vessels.

The first vessel will be ready for project deployment from early 2021. The design has been developed by OHT in close cooperation with Ulstein Design & Solutions BV, Liebherr and DNV GL. The vessel will fly the flag of the Norwegian International Ship Register.

The new additions to the existing fleet of five semi-submersible heavy transportation vessels aims to enable the company to take on full Transport & Installation (T&I) scope for foundations for offshore wind farms.

“We have one overriding goal with this initiative; to bring down the cost of building offshore wind farms. Our existing fleet already represents the most efficient way of transporting offshore wind farm foundations over long distances.

"Combining this with the patent pending ULSTEIN Alfa Lift installation vessel design, we expect to set a new benchmark in cost per foundation installed. We look very much forward to working closely with the industry to achieve our ambitious targets”, said Torgeir E. Ramstad, CEO for OHT

The design for the vessel, Alfa Lift, includes innovative solutions to ensure efficiency when installing foundations for offshore wind farms. The vessel combines good cargo carrying capacity with a 3,000t crane and the ability to submerge offshore.

Liebherr will deliver the crane which has been designed to be robust with respect to motions and dynamics, enabling the crane to lift loads up to its maximum capacity in challenging offshore conditions.

The vessel has a total length of 216.3m, and a breadth of 56m. Total usable deck area exceeds 10,000m2. Up to 10x 1,500t jacket foundations or 11x 2,000t monopiles together with transition pieces and mission equipment can be loaded on to the decks, transported to the wind farm, and installed – all with the same vessel.

The vessel’s main deck is full mechanised with skidding tracks, which are used to move foundations during load-out and installation. A trolley picks up each foundation and brings it to within reach of the crane.

No crew is present on the main deck during these operations. The integrated motion compensated pile gripper allows installation of monopiles in DP mode.

It is designed with battery hybrid propulsion, it has an exhaust gas scrubber and is Tier III compliant, all in order to protect environment. To enhance sea state limitations and reduce weather downtime, Alfa Lift has the capability to submerge offshore during the installation operation.

All the above-mentioned features combined makes the vessel an important contributor to lowering the cost of energy from offshore wind farms. It is also possible the vessel could serve other secondary markets within heavy transportation, installation and decommissioning.

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OHT prepare to perform full wind farm installation

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