Windcat Hydrogen CSOVs to Feature SMST Mission Equipment

May 9, 2023, by Adnan Memija

SMST has been awarded a contract by Damen Shipyards for the delivery of two sets of mission equipment for the two newbuilds Elevation Series Commissioning Service Operating Vessels (CSOVs) for Windcat Offshore.

Under the contract, SMST will deliver a gangway (Telescopic Access Bridge L-Series) combined with Access & Cargo Tower and the “world’s largest” 3D motion-compensated crane.

The SMST mission equipment that will be in operation on board the CSOVs from 2025 contains the first ever 10t 3D motion-compensated crane, being the largest 3D crane worldwide, according to the company.

“This version from our wide range of 3D cranes offers new possibilities for offshore handling. The construction of offshore wind farms can be executed even more efficiently”, said Menno de Jong, Sales Manager at SMST.

“We are pleased to work in a solid cooperation with SMST. Their latest motion compensated gangway combined with tower and elevator has the greatest range available on the market, reaching up to 30m above sea level”, added Stephen Bolton, Managing Director at Windcat Offshore.

The Elevation Series CSOVs have been designed by Damen Shipyards in cooperation with Windcat and CMB.TECH. The design was unveiled last year during our Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference.

The vessels are 87 metres long, 20 metres wide, can accommodate 120 people on board, and will be powered by hydrogen.

The CSOVs will be built at Ha Long Shipyard, Vietnam, and will be delivered to Windcat Offshore, a new business unit within Windcat, which will focus on offshore energy commissioning and services.

Initially, two vessels were ordered with options for further vessels.

To significantly reduce the vessels’ CO2 footprint, Windcat and CMB.TECH will provide the same dual-fuel hydrogen technology for the Elevation Series as on board the Hydrocat, the world’s first hydrogen-powered Crew Transfer Vessel (CTV). This approach is also expected to make a critical contribution to the development of rules and regulations related to the use of hydrogen as a fuel in medium-sized vessels.

“We are committed to building sustainable vessels and we believe with their offshore systems on board, SMST can support us in achieving this goal”, states Joost van der Weiden, Sales Manager Benelux at Damen Shipyards.