Viking Welcome for Jan De Nul’s New Jack-Up

Jan De Nul has utilised a recently acquired wind farm installation vessel, Taillevent, on an offshore wind project in the German Baltic Sea.

Taillevent, formerly MPI Discovery, was acquired by Jan De Nul from MPI Offshore this summer.

The jack-up’s first task was to complete the installation of a new 83-tonne crane on the offshore substation of the 350MW Wikinger (Viking) offshore wind farm.

The Wikinger, operated by Iberdrola, is connected to the German power grid and supplies green energy to approximately 350,000 homes on the island of Rügen.

Offshore renewables is a business in which Jan De Nul Group is investing heavily to further strengthen its position in this industry, the company said.

“In the past decade, we invested a lot in staff and equipment for our offshore activities. More specifically for the installation of offshore wind farms, we acquired two specialized offshore installation vessels: the Vole au vent in 2015 and the Taillevent this summer,” said Peter De Pooter, Offshore Renewables Manager at Jan De Nul Group.

“Meanwhile more expansion plans are being developed within our new-building department. These investments are key for Jan De Nul Group’s growth.”

Taillevent was built by China’s Cosco Nantong in 2011 and was specifically designed to transport, lift and install offshore wind turbines and foundations. The vessel features a 1,000-tonne main crane, plus a 50-tonne auxiliary crane, has a maximum operating depth of 40 metres, a deadweight of 6,000 tonnes, and can accommodate 112 persons.

The jack-up is 138.5 metres long and is equipped with six legs to lift itself above the sea level for stable working without the impact of waves.