Seaway 7’s next-generation wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV), Seaway Ventus , has commenced construction with the laying of the keel in early June 2022, according to information in the company’s latest trading update.
Reaching this milestone at the beginning of this month is in accordance with the planned delivery schedule for the vessel, the company said.
China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI), which is building Seaway Ventus at its yard in Jiangsu, is expected to deliver the vessel in the second quarter 2023.
The shipbuilder officially started working on the new WTIV in November 2021 with the cutting of the first steel.
Seaway Ventus will be amongst the world’s largest jack-up installation vessels, designed specifically to transport and install the next-generation offshore wind turbines and XL monopile foundations.
The WTIV will feature a telescopic leg-encircling crane with a maximum lifting capacity of 2,500 tonnes in retracted mode and 1,600 tonnes in extended mode, and will be capable of installing wind turbine components in water depths of 65 metres, at a height of up to 182 metres above the sea.
The vessel will also be prepared for hydrogen fuel cells which will cut emissions even further when such technology becomes available.
In October 2021, Ørsted selected Seaway 7 as a preferred contractor for the transport and installation of wind turbines for part of its Gode Wind 3 and Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farms in Germany, with Seaway Ventus (then known as VIND1) chosen to do the work.