German shipping group Harren & Partner has added the jack-up vessel Wind Lift I to its fleet, and has this week announced the launch of Bremen-based SAL Renewables, a provider of offshore wind installation services.
"Born as a sister company to the renowned heavy lift shipping company SAL Heavy Lift, this new specialised entity focuses on the offshore maintenance and installation of wind turbines and their corresponding components," Harren & Partner said of SAL Renewables.
"The Harren & Partner Group is as busy as ever with its work in the global wind energy sector. Already an established and preferred logistics provider to contractors and turbine manufacturers in the offshore wind sector, SAL is taking another significant step in expanding its footprint in the field of renewables. Today, SAL Renewables opens its doors as a supplier of specialized vessels as well as maintenance and installation solutions to the offshore wind industry," Harren & Partner said earlier this week.
SAL Renewables launches with a specialized Wind Lift I vessel. The Wind Lift I is a 2010-built dynamic positioning (DP) jack-up crane vessel suited for offshore wind maintenance projects as well as the installation of wind turbine parts. The vessel has a 500 t capacity offshore crane, and an accommodation block for up to 50 people,
“Wind Lift I represents an important enhancement of our fleet. It extends our scope of action to provide our customers with comprehensive, yet customized solutions,” says Heiko Felderhoff, Managing Director of SAL Renewables. “Wind Lift I is a highly adaptable vessel. There are only few things that it can’t do, it’s kind of like a Swiss army knife. This asset makes for a great start for our new venture with SAL Renewables.”
Matthieu Moerman, Head of Projects at SAL Renewables, adds: “Megawatts capacity of wind parks keep increasing and old wind parks will need to be renewed with new turbines or decommissioned. With Wind Lift I, we are not only targeting the installation and maintenance market but also decommissioning and upgrading of old existing wind parks.”
Dr. Martin Harren, Managing Director of Harren & Partner, explains the strategy behind the founding of SAL Renewables and the acquisition of Wind Lift I: “Wind power has been a cornerstone of our business in the past few years, and we continue to see significant projects here.
"The world’s demand for energy is higher than ever before, and a major energy transition is currently underway. The projects resulting from this change are crucial to our business.
"SAL Renewables is a perfect supplement to our established logistics business, but also something new. By offering maintenance and component installation services predominantly for the wind turbines themselves, we are expanding our total service offerings to the global renewables market while also meeting the toughest individual demands and expectations in the offshore markets.”