Doosan doing it right for wind farm vessels
An upturn in commercial requirements and a growing demand for unsophisticated engines has led to a surge in demand for Doosan engines.
The range is favoured among end users for its simplicity and ease of maintenance. Currently more than 20 Doosan engines supplied by UK and Ireland distributor WaterMota are being installed into new vessels under construction.
The burgeoning fleet of service vessels for the offshore wind farm industry is a growing market for WaterMota, with one such vessel being built by Navalu Aluminium Work Boats in France for wind farm service provider Enviroserve. It is due to be launched early next year.
Another wind farm support vessel, which has just completed sea trials, is due to go into service working in the North Sea for Carlin Boat Charters. Channel Chieftain VI is a 19m aluminium carft built by Aluminium Boat Building Co of Hayling Island UK. It is powered by a pair of 4V222TIM Doosan engines developing 647kW at 2,100 rpm and driving through Twin Disc gearboxes.
Carlin Boat Charter, headed by Pat Carlin, provides passenger and crew transfer services to wind farms across the UK and Northern.Europe. He said, “It’s a growing market. The renewable sector is very big and in the next ten to 15 years is due to continue to expand rapidly.
“The boats have to be able to cope with a 1.5m to 2m wave height and work 24 hours a day, 52 weeks of the year. A main consideration is reliability, a good build, reliable engines and speed. The vessels need to go at a speed of 25 knots for a 50 to 70 mile round trip. A 60ft boat travelling at 25 knots in most weather does take a lot of horsepower.”
Another consideration for Pat when choosing the Doosan engines was the back-up and support available and the ability to fix any problems easily on site.
“Doosan engines in particular are very popular with many end users for their proven design, reliability and competitive outlay. Many of the vessels are in use 24 hours a day in extreme conditions, so reliability and fuel efficiency is essential, said WaterMota MD Mike Beacham.
“We are extremely busy at the moment. We are expanding into new markets with many enquiries from companies building wind farm support vessels. It is a very big growing area and one which is set to continue to expand.”
