MidOcean Wind LLC and Hornblower Wind LLC’s joint venture has taken delivery of a pair of new Jones Act-compliant Crew Transport Vessels (CTVs).
The new craft – WINDEA Courageous and WINDEA Intrepid – are the first of five identical Incat Crowther-designed CTVs ordered by the joint venture and are, to date, the largest newbuild CTVs delivered to the U.S. offshore wind industry.
Bureau Veritas-classed, the first of the new vessels, WINDEA Courageous, was constructed at the St. Johns Ship Building yard in Palatka, Fla., while the WINDEA Intrepid was built by Louisiana-based Gulf Craft LLC and is currently chartered to GE Renewables.
Both vessels are based at New Bedford, Ma., and are currently operating in support of Vineyard Wind 1, the 62-unit, 800 MW offshore wind farm, located approximately 18 miles southeast of Martha’s Vineyard.
The third and fourth in the series are being built by St. Johns Ship Building with construction of the fifth vessel currently underway at the Breaux Brothers shipyard in Louisiana. All five boats are U.S. Coast Guard Subchapter L-certified.
Powered by four Volvo DI13 main engines that drive quad Volvo IPS propulsion units, the vessels are “hybrid-ready,” meaning they feature additional space to accommodate upgraded hybrid electric propulsion that could be retrofitted in the future.
Transfer capability “is enhanced by the Incat Crowther resilient-bow technology which reduces impact forces applied to wind turbine boat landings,” the designer said.
The upper deck level of the vessels feature an elevated, large wheelhouse, as well as two single cabins, two double cabins and three bathrooms.
A large, 1,076-square foot forward deck and a 377-square foot aft deck provide ample space for the carriage of up to 50 tons of cargo to offshore wind installations.
To assist with cargo loading and unloading, both vessels are fitted with a Palfinger Marine knuckle boom crane on the forward deck.
The construction of this series of CTVs “signals the official launch of the new St. Johns Ship Building’s dedicated focus on constructing high-speed aluminum vessels,” said Ed Sheets, executive vice president and director of business strategy for Americraft Marine Group, a subsidiary of St. Johns Ship Building.
“The groundwork supporting the construction of Jones Act-compliant CTVs was laid more than two years ago through multiple facility modifications and the acquisition of new production equipment such as the installation of a CNC router for processing of non-ferrous metals and composite materials,” he added.