Fred Olsen Windcarrier’s specialist jack-up vessels Brave Tern and Bold Tern are to undergo upgrades in the next 12 months.
The company said Brave Tern has already arrived at the modification yard at Franklin Offshore in Rotterdam, where Franklin Offshore and SRC Group will carry out the work.
The planned upgrades first reported in subscriber-only newsletter reNEWS include extending the jacking legs by 14 metres, making the legs 92.4 metres long.
The cranes will also be prepared for a boom extension of up to 20 metres. This will include both an insert piece for the crane boom and an extension of the A-frame. The lifting height will become 120 metres from the main deck.
Fred Olsen said that with the upgrades in place, the two vessels will be capable of transporting four complete ‘multi MW’ turbines with full towers throughout the year in water depths of up to 55 metres – up to 60 metres in the summer.
Fred Olsen Windcarrier head of commercial and projects Even Larsen said: “With offshore wind turbines growing in capacity, with a greater weight and larger rotor diameter, and increased hub heights, the vessels will need to be adapted to meet this need.”
Image: Bold Tern in action at Riffgat (EWE)
