Heerema develops floating engineering

Offshore installation and decommissioning firm Heerema says it has developed an alternative method of installing wind turbines that does not need a wet-tow and removes the need for marshalling yards.

The ‘Floating to Floating’ installation method uses floaters that can be built on land before being dry-towed on a transport vessel to the site, the company says.

On arrival, the floaters are installed using Heerema’s floating installation frame to lift them off the vessel.

“Heerema’s floating installation frame will submerge the floaters down by weight, removing the need for high-tech ballasting or tensioning systems and reducing installation duration,” the company says.

“The bottom foundation work can be executed in parallel by optimising the capabilities of Heerema’s semi-submersible crane vessels.”

The cost of offshore wind development could ultimately prevent commercial upscaling, Heerema says, which is why it has come up with the floating solution.

The company has not said whether the Floating to Floating system has been used commercially yet on any of its ongoing projects, such as the reconstruction of Denmark’s Tyra wind farm.

It was also awarded the contract to install the substation for what will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm at Dogger Bank, which is owned by SSE Renewables, Equinor and Eni.