Service operations vessel operator Esvagt is planning to target further short-term contracts for its fleet of vessels at offshore wind farms.
The Danish company’s Esvagt Dana vessel (pictured) entered into a contract with Vattenfall in February on the 406MW Horns Rev 3 project off the coast Denmark.
Esvagt said the deal was an “atypically short SOV contract”, while all the company’s other SOVs that work in the offshore wind market are built for “long-term contracts for a specific task in a fixed area”.
According to Esvagt commercial head Ib Hansen the choice of SOVs for short-term contracts is limited and so provides a market opportunity.
“We see that there is potential in offering an SOV with Esvagt’s competences and concept to a market that is more dynamic,” he said.
The newly-built Esvagt Dana has a walk-to-work system, boat transfer with Esvagt’s STB12 boat, a centrally placed crane and 76 single cabins.
Both the gangway and the crane can operate on both sides of the vessel, which offers the potential for much faster tempering and streamlining of both transfers of cargo and personnel without impacting safety, said Hansen.
“Vattenfall and the crew deserve some credit for taking advantage of the vessel’s many possibilities in order to drive a safe and efficient operation, where you really get work done,” he said.
The STB12 boat can be used for variety of roles, including when the gangway system is not usable, Esvagt said.
“For example, if the weather is foggy, thus hindering us in approaching the wind turbine by vessel, or if we cannot use the walk-to-work system due to work on the wind turbine, our STB12 can thankfully do the job,” said Hansen.