Tidal Transit christens CTV for Equinor wind farm

Imogen Rose is a WindFlex 27 model designed by Incat Crowther and fitted with Volvo Penta Quad-IPS. She has been designed as a ‘frontrunner’ for next-generation builds, says Tidal Transit, which means she can be retrofitted with zero-emissions power supply and propulsion when feasible.

Tidal Transit says her hull design and onboard systems are future proofed for this in an era of electric-ready designs being increasingly sought after by the offshore industry, and she has been designed for high levels of fuel efficiency to deliver offshore modifications and maintenance at the Sheringham Shoal wind farm.

“Imogen Rose has been constantly busy since delivery earlier in the year, so we’re delighted to have been finally able give her the belated christening she deserves,” said Tidal Transit commercial director Leo Hambro, who jointly announced plans with Volvo Penta CEO Anna Müller at Seawork this year to outfit the CTV e-Ginny with Volvo Penta’s IPS 900E.

This would make her the first fully electric CTV, they said at Seawork in June. “We are starting with the IPS 900E then the 650E, then we will offer a fully electric version of all five drivelines going forward,” Müller said.

Tidal Transit has been supplying crew transfer solutions for more than a decade to Equinor, which operates Sheringham Shoal wind farm as well as the nearby Dudgeon Offshore Wind Farm Extension.

Sheringham Shoal began operations in 2012, and comprises of 88 wind turbines that can generate around 1.1terawatt hours of electricity a year. It is owned by Equinor along with a subsidiary of Equitix Offshore 3 Limited (co-owned by funds managed by Equitix and The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG)) and Macquarie Asset Management (via Macquarie GIG Renewable Energy Fund 1).