Dutch equipment manufacturer Huisman has won the contract to design, construct and deliver “the biggest leg encircling crane ever installed on a wind turbine installation vessel” for Jan de Nul’s new offshore wind installation vessel Voltaire.
The crane will be unique in its size, capacity and novel features to allow efficient installation of the next generation offshore wind turbines. The vessel will be built by COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry in China and the Huisman crane will be built in Huisman’s own production facility in Xiamen, P.R. of China and installed at the shipyard.
With an unrivalled crane capacity of over 3,000 tonnes and an evenly unrivalled lifting height, this jack-up vessel will be able to support the renewable energy industry to build the future wind farms at sea.
The global offshore wind industry is developing the next generation of offshore wind turbines. These turbines can be more than 270 metres high and are fitted with blades of 120 metres long.
Offshore installation vessels currently available on the market are facing increasing difficulties to install these types of turbines due to the turbines’ sizes and installation heights, as well as the ever-increasing foundation dimensions. With this new Huisman-crane Jan De Nul is ready for future developments in the market.
The Voltaire will be equipped with the biggest leg encircling crane ever installed on a wind turbine installation vessel and together with its flyjib will have the highest lifting height in the world.
Since 1984, Huisman has successfully delivered more than 224 heavy lift offshore cranes with capacities ranging from 300 up to 10,000mt. This extensive track record in building novel solutions provides the basis on which Huisman is capable of successfully delivering step-changing lifting technology. Primary examples of this are Huisman’s unique segmented slew bearing design, significantly reducing the weight of the crane, and the crane’s fully electric drive system, which was first introduced in the 1980’s.
This contract is the second project in a row between Jan De Nul and Huisman following a project to develop and produce the world’s largest monopile gripper in a record period for Jan De Nul’s Vole au vent wind turbine installation vessel. This project was awarded mid 2018 and will be delivered in the upcoming months.
Joop Roodenburg, President of Huisman : “As the next generation wind turbines are becoming bigger and bigger, we keep on pioneering to develop novel and innovative solutions to install these turbines. We are therefore extremely happy with the confidence and trust that Jan De Nul placed in Huisman by awarding us with this second contract.”