North Star has secured a contract with EnBW to deliver a hybrid-electric service operations vessel (SOV) on a decade-long minimum charter to service the He Dreiht wind farm off Germany.
Scheduled to commence long-term charter with EnBW from the end of next year, the walk-to-work vessel will provide premier accommodation in field for up to 34 wind technicians as they maintain the development’s 64 wind turbines, located around 90 km northwest of the island of Borkum and 110 km west of Helgoland.
The SOV will also act as a logistics hub and warehouse.
The agreement marks North Star’s first offshore wind win outside the UK market and supports its European growth strategy to add 40 new SOVs to its fleet by 2040.
The newbuild uses a VARD 407 design which has been tailored to meet EnBW’s specific requirements.
To drive high performance and efficiencies, the high specification vessel includes Voith Schneider eVSP propulsion and is prepared for the use of methanol as a fuel.
The ship is also fully equipped with a height adjustable motion compensated gangway and 3D compensated crane.
North Star European renewables lead Caspar Blum said: “Following the highly regulated EU tendering process, we are thrilled to be selected by EnBW as part of their maintenance solution to ensure once completed, the wind farm remains consistently operational and generating renewable electricity.
“Penetrating the European offshore wind sector so promptly after establishing our presence in Hamburg last summer, is testament to our service-led approach and passion to deliver SOVs which easily integrate into wind farm operations and O&M strategies.
“With high operability a key component to providing fast, safe and efficient personnel transfers, we worked closely with EnBW and our partners VARD to develop a robust and superior SOV to mitigate sea state and wave height challenges.”
Michael Splett, Global Head of O&M Wind Offshore at EnBW. “This vessel will be the backbone of our service and logistics operations at our He Dreiht wind farm.
“Working with North Star, we were able to specify its setup to ideally meet the requirements of our operations teams.”