Kongsberg Maritime (KM) has signed a €28m technology contract with Chinese shipbuilder Cosco Shipping Offshore for an F-Class, foundation installation vessel.
The vessel will have greater lifting capacity than previous vessels and will be delivered to Danish service provider Cadeler in 2025.
The agreement will see KM supply a comprehensive technology package for the F-class jack-up which will be able to transport up to six XL monopiles (weighing 2300-2600 tonnes each) per round-trip, substantially improving efficiency over current vessels, it said.
The F-class vessel also features a convertible design, allowing a refit process to convert its role from a foundation installation vessel to a wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV).
This is the third contract KM has received for Cadeler installation vessels with KM’s Integrated Solution being crucial to the delivery and operation of all three vessels, which are destined to be among the largest of their type and capable of transporting and installing multiple sets of next- and future-generation wind turbines, and their foundations.
This well-proven suite of solutions combines KM’s optimised thruster package, electrical solution and dynamic positioning functionalities to maintain operability in all conditions and includes multiple digital tools to improve sustainability and reliability.
“Our vessels are designed to meet both the current and future needs of the offshore industry. As the world needs more efficient offshore windfarms to help meet sustainability goals this requires larger turbines and larger, more efficient vessels to install them.”