‘MPI Adventure’ to arrive soon in Europe

This 140m LOA vessel will arrive in European waters later this spring. Together with the MPI Resolution, currently in operation with MPI Offshore, and the second newbuild vessel, MPI Discovery, the MPI Adventure will play an important role in the delivery of renewable energy to the homes of Europe and beyond.

MPI Adventure’s first challenge will be the installation of monopile foundations for the London Array Offshore Wind Farm Project, which is to be built approximately 20 km off the coast of Kent and Essex in the UK and is scheduled for construction in two phases. The first phase, due for completion in 2012, will cover 90 sq/km and include 175 turbines, with a combined capacity of 630 megawatts.

MPI Adventure will feature a 1,000 ton capacity main crane which was designed by Gusto MSC of the Netherlands, constructed in China and transported to Cosco Nantong Shipyard by barge. Following arrival at the shipyard, construction teams executed with pinpoint accuracy the lifting of the crane from the barge and placement of the ‘back mast’ of the crane in its final position on the main deck of the vessel.

The main crane will be the work horse of the MPI Adventure and will be capable of lifting loads up to 1,000 tons to a height of more than 100m. These specifications have been chosen in order to prepare MPI Offshore for the challenges of the offshore wind industry in the coming years. The high specification of the main crane ensures that MPI Offshore will be able to respond to the ongoing evolution of wind power technology which results in the development of ever higher capacity, more efficient and heavier wind turbines.

The electro-hydraulic main crane weighs over 400 tons. Both main hoist crane wires are constructed from 48mm steel wire rope and are each almost 1.5 km long. Whilst the majority of the crane’s work will take place when the installation vessel is in the jacked-up position, the main crane will also be capable of significant lifting performance whilst the vessel is in the floating position, either at sea or in port.