Damen Unveils New Offshore Support Vessel Design

Dutch shipbuilder and ship designer Damen has developed a new concept vessel – the Offshore Support Vessel (OSV) 9020.

According to Damen, the new vessel has been designed in response to calls from vessel operators for great vessel versatility offshore.

“We were approached by several different operators at the same time, all looking for slightly different offshore capabilities, but similar enough that their requirements could be met with a conceptual standard platform,” said design & proposal engineer Mark Couwenberg.

“The thinking behind the OSV 9020 is very much in line with the Damen philosophy of shipbuilding in series; it’s a standard product, as a result drawing upon proven technology, that can be tailored to individual requirements via modularisation.”

The vessel has been designed to perform a variety of offshore tasks both at surface level and subsea, Damen said. When it comes to the accommodation, the OSV 9020 provides living space for up to 120 persons on board. A helicopter deck is integrated in the design.

The vessel is primarily designed to operate on DP. The four identical azimuthing thrusters are arranged symmetrically: two on the stern and two on the bow. According to Damen, this ensures maximum station-keeping performance while avoiding high noise levels in the accommodation. In addition, this layout is said to result in lower maintenance costs, lower fuel consumption, and less total installed power.

The OSV 9020 is powered by diesel generators which are supported by a battery pack. The vessel is fitted with a hybrid power generation system, or it can optionally be delivered to operate on green methanol produced from biological waste streams.