On the Ways

CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY AT WORKBOAT YARDS Maersk installation vessel for waters off N.Y. will be built in Singapore

Maersk Supply Service

The WTIV for Empire Wind will feature jacking units, a load transfer system and crane from off shore crane manufacturer NOV.

Awind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) to be built in Singapore will be teamed with U.S.-built tugs and barges to install the Empire Wind offshore turbine project outside New York Harbor, according to wind developers Equinor and BP, and Maersk Supply Service.

Copenhagen-based Maersk said it’s been developing a design concept since 2019 with “unique feeder capabilities” to make its WTIV 30% more ef cient than using other jackup vessels.

Without any U.S.- ag installation vessels built yet, offshore wind developers are expected to rely on the feeder model — using Jones Act-compliant tugs and barges to carry wind turbine components out to foreign- ag WTIVs at sea.

With its improved handling design, the Maersk WTIV may be better equipped to tackle tricky transfers of heavy turbine tower parts. Maersk said its installation concept includes a novel WTIV design “with a patented load transfer system that will enable safe transfer of cargo.’

The concept will utilize two new tugs and barges to transport wind turbine components out to the installation site, while the wind installation vessel itself will remain on location to carry out successive installations.

SembCorp Marine, Singapore, will build the WTIV with a steel-cutting ceremony set for the fourth quarter, according to Maersk. The vessel’s jacking units, load transfer system and crane will be provided by Houston-based offshore crane manufacturer NOV Inc., while ABS is supporting the design work.

Maersk expects it will deliver the vessel into U.S. waters in 2025.

Meanwhile, Jones Act-compliant tugs and barges will be built in the U.S. by Kirby Offshore Wind — in the “feeder barge” model that’s to be used, pending arrival of new U.S.-built WTIVs into the market.

“The newbuilt tugs and barges will further create employment opportunities for U.S. citizens — both during the vessel construction phase and the subsequent operations for Equinor and BP,” according to Maersk.

According to a Department of Energy report, WTIVs are self-powered vessels with jackup capabilities, purpose-built for offshore wind farm installation and O&M activities.

They are typically 295' or more in length, with a beam of 130' or more.

The most modern of these vessels are designed with the capability to transport as many as 10 complete wind turbines, although a move beyond the current 5-6 MW turbine size in the future would stretch the storage capabilities of even the largest contemporary WTIV, such as the A2Sea’s Sea Installer, which measures 430'×130'. Next generation 10-MW turbines will have blades in excess of 260' and tower heights of close to 330'.

Speci cations for Kirby’s feeder barges and tugs, and the shipyard or yards that will build them, have not been released. — Kirk Moore

Master Boat Builders

Master Boat Builders delivers 5,100-hp harbor tug to Seabulk

The 98'6"×43'×17'6" Spartan, the latest high-power tug to join the Seabulk eet, adds to a growing list of vessels featuring the fully integrated hybrid propulsion plant from Berg Propulsion.

Already operational at Port Arthur, Texas, following delivery by Master Boat Builders, the Robert Allandesigned RApport 3000 vessel, which has an 18'6" draft, is the rst of two 90-ton bollard pull tugs using this latest Berg package, with the second due in service in the third quarter.

In addition to Berg MTA 628 azimuthing thrusters, Berg VS3 variable frequency drives with motors, and its own hybrid control system, Berg’s design, supply, and integration includes the switchboard with full power management plus control of the tug’s twin Caterpillar 3512E Tier 4 (2,550 hp) main engines and its gensets — two Cat C18s and one C7.1. The propulsion package gives the Spartan a running speed of 12.6 knots.

Berg’s hybrid electric propulsion system includes high levels of redundancy for safety as well as the ability to switch seamlessly between operat-

New 98'6" tug is working in Texas.

ing modes with the push of a button.

The Multi Cat 2309 is Damen’s new, midrange CTV model. A vessel can run on main engines only, gensets only, or a combination of the two, optimizing energy use across the entire operating pro le. A tug in transit can minimize energy consumption and eliminate main engine wear by running on a single generator set. In hybrid mode, power is balanced between the diesel engines

BOATBUILDING BITTS

Eastern Shipbuilding Group

Fourth Heritage-class 360'x54' off shore patrol cutter for the Coast Guard.

Eastern Shipbuilding Group Inc. (ESG) announced in April that the Coast Guard awarded ESG a contract to begin construction of the fourth Heritage-class off shore patrol cutter (OPC), the future Coast Guard cutter Rush (WMSM 918). Eastern’s design of the 360’x54’ OPC includes a draft of 17’, speed in excess of 22 knots, a range of 10,200 nautical miles (at 14 knots), endurance for 60-day patrol cycles, carrying capabilities for an MH-60R or MH-65 helicopter, and three over-the-horizon (OTH) cutter boats. OPC’s missions include law enforcement, drug and migrant interdiction, search and rescue, and other homeland security and defense operations. Each OPC will feature a fl ight deck and advanced command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance equipment.

On April 1, Burger Boat Co. rolled over the hull of the Neebish Islander III so the next phase of construction could proceed. The 92'x33' passenger/vehicle ferry will be servicing traffi c to and from Neebish Island in the Eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan for the Eastern Upper Peninsula Transit Authority. The new Coast Guard-certifi ed, Subchapter T Neebish Islander III will have a 7'4" draft. Designed by Seacraft Design LLC, Sturgeon Bay, Wis., the U.S.-made steel ferry will operate year-round on the St. Mary’s River in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula between Barbeau, Mich., and Neebish Island. The ferry was designed to operate in the harsh winter environment and through the solid ice conditions that it will encounter on its route. Main propulsion will come from a pair of Tier 3 Caterpillar C18 diesel engines, producing 600 hp at 1,800 rpm each. The propulsion package will give the ferry a running speed of approximately 10 knots with a full load. Fuel capacity is 1,500 gals.

The Army Corps of Engineers, Buff alo District, awarded an $8.4 million contract to Cleveland-based Great Lakes

Towing in April for lease of the tugboat Don Raul to serve on the Great Lakes. The Don Raul is a 74', 2,800-hp, twinscrew seagoing tug, built by Great Lakes Shipyard in 2008. The tug will primarily be used on Lake Erie between Buff alo, N.Y. and Toledo, Ohio, but may serve all the way to Massena, N.Y., towing the Buffalo District’s repair fl eet. The fl eet is one of three strategically located across the Great Lakes, providing a fl exible, rapid response for maintenance at U.S. harbors and along the nation’s shorelines.

Conrad Shipyard LLC, Morgan City, La., announced in April that it was awarded a contract by the Army Corps of Engineers for the design and construction of two CELRE Detroit ice-class tugs. The vessels will provide mobilization of various pieces of fl oating equipment on the St. Mary’s River, upper Great Lakes, and Soo Harbor, as well as breaking ice up to 12" thick and performing ice scraping operations at the St. Mary’s Falls Canal. The 76'x25'x10'8.5" tugs will be diesel powered, twin screw, open wheel, with 1,600 hp and have deckhouses with galley/mess, berths, and sanitary facilities for a crew of three. The tugs are ABS classed as Maltese Cross A-1 Towing Vessels, Ice class C0, Great Lakes Service with Maltese Cross AMS. Each vessel will also comply with Subchapter M requirements.

Crowley Maritime Corp. has taken

delivery of Athena, its fourth and most powerful Tier 4 ship assist and harbor escort tug. The 77’ tug is compact in size but does not sacrifi ce power, off ering the most bollard pull for a tug under 80' in the market, according to Crowley offi cials. The vessel operates on a pair of 3,400-hp Caterpillar Marine 3516 Tier 4-compliant engines. This results in lower greenhouse gas emissions while achieving a power output of nearly 6,800 hp and 96 tons of bollard pull. Serving the Pacifi c Northwest out of Puget Sound, Wash., Athena, built by Diversifi ed Marine Inc., Portland, Ore., and chartered from Brusco Tug & Barge, Longview, Wash., complies with EPA Tier 4 pollution control technology criteria. The vessel is outfi tted with remote monitoring for increased vessel effi ciency and data interchange. Silver Ships Inc., Theodore, Ala., recently delivered a customized Ambar series 28' RIB to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The NOAA vessel is a custom-built Ambar six-meter (AM600), designed to be operated from NOAA The 76' ice-class tugs oceangoing ships. At just will operate on the under 28' (with a hull length Great Lakes. of 20'5") with an 8'10" beam and 22" draft, the RIB is powered by twin Mercury SeaPro 115-hp outboards. The boat also features an 80-gal. fuel tank, a trailer, and a boat cradle for deck storage to meet NOAA’s needs.

28' RIB for NOAA is powered by twin Mercury SeaPro 115-hp outboards.

Silver Ships and electrical motors to optimize fuel consumption, maneuvering response, and bollard performance.

“During the rst weeks in operation, Spartan has been living up to the promises made for hybrid propulsion vessels,” Daniel Thorogood, president and CEO, Seabulk, said in a statement. “Seabulk’s commitment to improving the sustainability of its operations is represented by its investment in a new generation of vessels whose exibility is proving that hybrid tug technology is our choice for the future.”

On deck is a JonRie Intertech hawser winch, series 225, with a line pull of 25 tons at 100 fpm, 300-ton brake capacity, and 600' of 8" Saturn 12 HMPE rope. There are also two Viking 10-man life rafts.

The propulsion package, installation of which was managed at the yard by Berg’s distributor and partner in the area, Thompson Marine, is the most advanced hybrid electric package ever delivered by Berg Propulsion, the company said.

“Thompson Marine managed the details from the earliest design phase through sea trials together with Master Boat Builders, Seabulk, Berg Propulsion and Caterpillar,” said Richard Tremayne, marine business manager, Thompson Marine. “This delivery sets down a marker that with the right team in place, the sustainability and performance bene ts of advanced hybrid electric propulsion are available to all.”

Spartan is ABS classed, Maltese Cross A1, Towing Service, Escort Vessel, AMS, UWILD.

Tankage includes 47,679 gals. of fuel; 5,087 gals. fresh water; 243 gals. main engine lube oil; and 236 gals. gear oil.

“This has been a landmark delivery for Master Boat Builders in next generation tug construction,” said Garrett Rice, the shipyard’s president, “and we look forward to completing work on the second of these innovative Seabulk tugboats later this year.” — Ken Hocke