(PALATKA, Fla.) — St. Johns Ship Building held a keel-laying ceremony Wednesday for the second of the series of aluminum crew transfer vessels (CTVs) used to service the offshore wind farm industry.
The announcement follows the Jones Act shipyard’s acquisition by Americraft Marine last May. The crew transfer vessels will be servicing U.S. offshore wind projects for construction, operations and maintenance.
The Chartwell Ambitious aluminum catamarans have the capacity to transport 24 personnel to and from wind turbines with speed, safety and stability. The vessels were commissioned by the Rhode Island-based Atlantic Wind Transfers (AWT), which participated in the ceremony.
“We are very pleased to earn the trust of Charles Donadio Jr. and the teams working with Atlantic Wind Transfers. This keel-laying ceremony represents the second Chartwell-designed Ambitious now under construction as we work hard to keep facility and infrastructure improvements just ahead of our construction goals,” said Jeff Bukoski, president of St Johns Ship Building and vice president of business development for Americraft Marine Group. “Our diverse portfolio of projects will continue to support vessels that will help American shift toward energy independence and a cleaner, healthier environment.”
“This is another milestone for Atlantic Wind Transfers as we lay the keel for our second crew transfer vessel at St. Johns as AWT continues to expand its CTV fleet to support offshore wind construction and (operations and maintenance) in the U.S.,” said Charles Donadio Jr., founder of AWT. “It was an honor to have representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville (Florida) leading the ceremony with the keel stamping of hull No. 175, as well as much gratitude to all the SJSB shipyard employees, Americraft Marine Group, Chartwell Marine and all of our vendors that are supporting these vessels through construction and into service for our future clients.”
The Ambitious, Chartwell Marine’s flagship CTV design, will be U.S. Jones Act-compliant, certified under U.S. Coast Guard Subchapter L and able to operate at any offshore wind farm in the U.S. under the safety and inspection standards of the Coast Guard. AWT currently operates the only two crew transfer vessels in the U.S. under long-term contracts, servicing the Block Island Wind Farm for Orsted and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Farm (CVOW) for Dominion Energy.
– St. Johns Ship Building
