Sietas Will be Developing Jack-up Vessel for Van Oord
Sietas is to be the first German shipyard to develop and build a jack-up vessel used for offshore wind farm installation. The order, which was signed today in Hamburg, comes from Dutch-based marine contractor Van Oord, working on dredging, offshore and marine engineering projects worldwide. In addition, Van Oord has placed an option for a second ship of the same type. No details have been released as to the purchase price.
The time elapsing between development and delivery to Van Oord, in September 2012, of this innovative jack-up vessel will be just 21 months. The construction phase is scheduled to last one year. The Sietas jack-up vessel has been developed for use in offshore wind farms. It has a loading capacity of up to 6.500 t and can work safely in depths of up to 45 m. Thanks to its self-loading capacity and jacking system, which also maintains the ship in a stable position even in heavy seas, it can work reliably and quickly. This innovative Type 187 special ship will measure 139 m in length and metres in width. It will have a 5,7 m draught and be capable of travelling at a speed of 12 knots. Neuenfelder Maschinenfabrik (NMF), which also forms part of the Sietas Group, will equip the ship with a special offshore crane with an outreach of 30 metres, capable of lifting 900 t and of operating at a height of up to approximately 120 metres above water level. When performing installations in wind energy farms, the special ship will be able to accommodate 74 crew members in single and double cabins.
“We are delighted to have won this order, as it provides us with an entry point into the growth market that is the offshore wind industry. Naturally, it also gives us great pride to have beaten off tough competition from the Netherlands, China and the United Arab Emirates”, explains Rüdiger Fuchs, CEO of the Sietas Group. The formula for success: Sietas will be acting as architect and integrator of the entire ship, supplying the offshore crane via Neuenfelder Maschinenfabrik (NMF), which also forms part of the Sietas Group, and guarantees the performance of its product. Says Rüdiger Fuchs: “We outdid the competition with our know-how as shipbuilders and manufacturers of specialist cranes. With a bid made up of the ship and crane, plus development and construction, we were able to offer a turnkey solution from a single source. In addition, we were more competitive than the other bidders in terms of the services we could offer and the price. We are the first company in Germany to have won such an order, as commissions for these special jack-up vessels have always previously been placed abroad.”