Clarksons Renewables Offshore Wind Vessel and Project Newsletter

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK 36

US Offshore Wind Sector Sets Sail on a Turbulent Sea of Opportunity by

David Matthews, Head of Strategy, Clarksons Offshore

The US offshore wind sector is on the rise, poised to become a major player in the global offshore wind industry. Projections indicate remarkable growth, with the potential for 23 GW of installed capacity by 2030 across 28 wind farms and approximately 1,600 turbines, a significant increase from the current 42 MW (2 wind farms and 7 turbines). The image above displays shipping activity around key East Coast projects over the past 4 months - an Offshore Wind Vessel Heat Map. Developers have proposed a staggering 45 GW of offshore wind capacity in the US, with a significant focus on the East Coast, including 11 GW off New York and 9.2 GW off New Jersey.

The US wind "fleet" currently comprises 25 vessels, primarily repurposed from oil and gas assets. However, limitations in US shipyards and competition for yard space present potential bottlenecks for US offshore wind expansion. It's no secret that there are issues in the US, as Orsted announced a $2 billion write-down due to setbacks in its US portfolio.

This underscores that even the most experienced developer can encounter problems when venturing beyond local waters into new territory. We want to avoid appearing overly optimistic about US offshore wind, as we recognize that this news may shake investor confidence, which will take time to rebuild. Delays in wind projects can be costly and impact cost-out figures and IRR.  

I've asked Olivier Candeel, our T&I Transport Manager, to shed some light on this based on his experience and recent interactions with OEMs, developers, and contractors in the US.

'In recent years, we've witnessed offshore construction projects taking off in new regions beyond the European continent where we have become accustomed to building offshore wind. After witnessing multi-scale projects in Taiwan, the spotlight is now on the United States. These endeavours provide the industry with numerous valuable lessons for the new generations of offshore wind projects to come. In well-established regions like the North Sea, practices such as Management-of-Change procedures and Variation Orders are standard protocol, and for good reason.

However, when stakeholders venture into new territories with less developed infrastructure, limited vessel availability, and evolving local regulations, finding creative solutions to keep projects on track becomes a challenge, as demonstrated by Orsted's recent announcement. Currently, in the USA, the industry is breaking new ground, both literally and figuratively. Developers and T&I Contractors are pioneering unconventional methods to turn offshore wind projects into a reality.

They're embracing Canadian marshalling ports for foundations, navigating the intricacies of the US Jones Act with specialized barges and tugs, employing advanced motion-compensated sea fastening systems, and utilizing US feeder and secondary work support ports. Each of these new elements is intertwined, and a hiccup in one part of the process can have a cascading impact on the entire project.

Add to that the challenges of working on the East Coast, with its unique mix of curious marine life and ever-changing weather forecasts, and you have a recipe for complex offshore operations and delays. So, for anyone who might assume that all of this is a walk in the park, I encourage you to think again. Offshore construction in emerging regions demands ingenuity, adaptability, and a relentless commitment to overcoming obstacles. Even the best can encounter challenges, and success depends on how the team reacts to these changes and overcomes them’.

At Clarksons, we understand the intricacies of the offshore wind industry, and we're here to support the US offshore wind sector in finding innovative solutions to get the job done. Our US-based team is at your disposal, and we're dedicated to helping you overcome these challenges.

The Clarksons team is already actively engaged in supporting both Vineyard and Southfork with various vessel requirements and contingency plans should delays affect the next phases of those projects.   Feel free to reach out to Frederik C. Andersen (Oslo), Jonathan Lints (Houston), or Olivier Candeel (Edinburgh) for assistance.

OFFSHORE RENEWABLES NEWS

Boskalis has acquired two contracts for the transportation and installation of the export and array cables for the Baltica 2 offshore wind farm off the coast of Poland. The two contracts have a total value of over €300 million and were awarded by a joint venture between PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna and Ørsted, which is developing the Baltica 2 project. The project scope comprises the transportation and installation of 107 array cables with a total length of more than 150 kilometers in addition to four 275 kV export cables with a total combined length of nearly 300 kilometers. Furthermore, Boskalis will carry out seabed preparation activities including the leveling of the seabed, pre-trenching and the removal of boulders. Upon completion of the cable installation activities, Boskalis will protect and stabilize the CPS (cable protection systems) with the placement of rock. Preparatory works will commence in 2025 and the transport and installation activities will commence in 2027.   Boskalis will deploy two cable-laying vessels, a construction support vessel, a subsea rock installation vessel and a trailing suction hopper dredger. Due to challenging soil conditions in the Baltic Sea, the cables will be installed in a pre-cut trench using the multi-mode Megalodon plough deployed from Boskalis’ construction support vessel Falcon.  The Baltica 2 offshore wind farm with a total capacity of up to 1.5 GW is located in the Polish section of the Baltic Sea approximately 40 kilometers off the coast of Poland between Leba and Ustka and will be the country’s largest renewable energy project to date. Source: Boskalis

Ecowende and Van Oord will collaborate on the construction of the offshore wind farm on Hollandse Kust West VI. According to the companies, this will be the most ecological wind farm yet, with minimal impact on the natural habitat of birds, bats and marine mammals, and with a thriving underwater world. The aim is to enable the development of offshore wind farms with a net-positive impact in the near future. The collaboration between the wind farm developer, a joint venture of Shell and Eneco, and Van Oord was announced this week. Contract signing will take place later this year. As Ecowende's contractor, Van Oord will be responsible for transporting and installing the foundations. Van Oord will also design, procure and lay the connecting cables between the wind turbines. Finally, Van Oord will be handling the transportation and installation of the wind turbines at sea. Source: Van Oord  

Offshore construction has officially commenced at RWE's Sofia Offshore Wind Farm, a 1.4 GW project. Prysmian’s Leonardo da Vinci vessel will lay the first section of high voltage direct current (HVDC) export cable. The 170-metre-long cable laying vessel will operate out of the Port of Middlesbrough and will lay two 130 kilometres sections of cable in parallel. One end of each of the two sections of subsea cable will be pulled underwater from the vessel through cable ducts that were installed earlier this year. Installation of two remaining 90km sections of marine export cable is planned for 2024. By late 2024, Leonardo da Vinci will have laid four sections of ±320kV HVDC marine export cables with XLPE insulation, totalling 440 kilometres plus the accompanying communications cables. The wind farm will use 100 Siemens Gamesa 14 MW offshore wind turbines and is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026. Source: RWE

Solstad Offshore has announced new contract awards for two of its subsea vessels. CSV Normand Baltic has been awarded a 180-day contract for providing Walk-to-Work services on offshore wind project in Asia. The contract will commence in October 2023. CSV Normand Samson has been hired for a period of minimum 260 days to support a field development project in South America with commencement in the first quarter 2024. Solstad continues to see a high demand for CSV vessels from renewable energy and Oil & Gas clients. Source: Solstad  

Seabed surveys in the Southern North Sea II and Utsira North areas off the Norwegian coast have been completed for this year. These surveys spanned two years and were faced with challenges, including technical problems and bad weather conditions that delayed the planned completion of the surveys in Utsira North, according to the Norwegian government. Progress within these project areas has varied, with the northern part completed, the southern area nearing completion, while the central area has just begun. The Norwegian government has completed the surveys for the first phase of the Southern North Sea II project, so data will be available soon. This phase will award 1.5 GW of offshore wind capacity, with a further 1.5 GW earmarked for a later second phase. While this year's seabed surveys have been completed, the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy intends to propose to the Norwegian Parliament the completion of the surveys for the announced Utsira North project areas in the spring, the press release says. Norway launched its first offshore wind auction on 29 March, offering a total capacity of 3 GW spread across the Southern North Sea II and Utsira North. The bidding deadline was originally set for 1 September and the winners were to be announced by the end of the year. However, pending EFTA Surveillance Authority approval of the grants awarded, the application deadline had to be extended to 1 November. The allocation of the first offshore wind areas is now planned for early 2024. Source: Offshore WIND  

First wind turbine for Vineyard Wind 1 has departed New Bedford Terminal. The GE Haliade-X wind turbine generator (WTG) was shipped to its location more than 30 miles off the coast of Cape Cod. Foss Maritime has partnered with DEME Offshore US to design and build specialized US-flagged barges to transport the components to the lease area. The Marmac in New Bedford, Mass., and the Foss Prevailing Wind in Boston, both 400-feet-long, are the only two barges in existence capable of transporting in an upright position GE’s Haliade-X turbine components that when constructed will rise more than 700 feet. Source: Vineyard Wind

MEET CLARKSONS AT RENEWABLES EVENTS

OSW Port & Vessels Summit, New Orleans 21st – 22nd Sept. | More Information 

ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi 2nd – 5th Oct. | More information

ACP's Offshore WINDPOWER, Boston 3rd – 4th Oct. | More information

Floating Wind, Aberdeen 4th – 5th Oct. | More information

Wind Summit, Kitakyushu City, Japan 11th – 13th Oct. | More information

5th Japan Wind Energy Day, Tokyo 17th – 18th Oct. | More information 

Wind Energy Taiwan, Taipei  18th – 20th Oct. | More information

10th Asia Offshore Wind Day, Busan  24th Oct. | More Information

Offshore Energy, Amsterdam 28th – 29th Nov. | More information

Zhongtian Technology Submarine Cable (ZTTSC) has secured a export cable for the Baltica 2 offshore wind farm in Poland. ZTTSC's scope is to design, manufacture, supply, and deliver the 158km export cables. The Baltica 2 offshore wind farm is being developed by Orsted and PGE and will have a capacity of 1.5 GW. Source: ZTTSC  

Ørsted has announced the successful installation of the offshore substation at Gode Wind 3 Offshore Wind Farm, located 30 km off Norderney, Germany. This substation will efficiently collect and convert the energy produced by 23 wind turbines at the site. Gode Wind 3 will generate 253 MW of clean power and, in conjunction with the under-construction Borkum Riffgrund 3, will supply energy equivalent to 1.2 million German households. Source: Ørsted  

Goldwind lifted and installed an offshore wind turbine with a capacity of 14.3 MW within a remarkable 30 working hours. This speed was achieved by optimising various time-consuming processes. The 14.3 MW wind turbine with a 252-metre rotor was successfully installed at the Zhangpu Liuao Phase 2 offshore wind farm in Fujian Province, which is currently being built by China Three Gorges (CTG). By implementing strategies such as rotor pre-assembly, modular designs, improved conditions for upending tool disengagement and more, Goldwind expects to speed up hoisting by 26 hours, improving overall efficiency by 40%. Source: Goldwind and Offshore WIND

Contacts

OSLO

Frederik Colban-Andersen | Managing Director 

Erik Tønne | Managing Director, Market Analysis

Jens Egenberg | Head of Research Renewables

Anders C. Hagen | Chartering Walk-2-Work, Subsea

Vegard Vollsæter | S&P and Newbuilding T&I/CSOV

Espen Bjørnson | Chartering Subsea & Wind

HAMBURG

David Matthews | Head of Strategy Renewables

Rouven C. Willner | Projects SOV, CSOV

Tim Börner | Chartering Walk-2-Work, Gangways

Henning Leverkus | Chartering CTV, Tugs & Workboats

Sina Ingber | Marketing & Projects

COPENHAGEN

Gabriel Andersen | Principal Consultant Logistics and EPC  

LONDON

Neil Buchan | Head of APAC Subsea & Wind 

Mikkel Nielsen | Principal Consultant Logistics & O&M 

Chris Roberts | Chartering and Renewables Consultant

ABERDEEN

James Braid | Divisional Director Logistics, Transport & Installation

Olivier Candeel | Chartering & Consultant Transport & Installation

Oliver Thompson | Market Analyst, Transport & Installation

Chris Tweedie | Chartering Subsea and Offshore

HOUSTON

Jonathan Lints | Director Subsea and Renewables

Jack Fitzgerald | Chartering Jones Act Specialist 

Tylor Bojé | Chartering OSV / Jones Act Lead

SHANGHAI

Jack Qiu | Projects Newbuilds and China 

SINGAPORE

Tilly Manley | Chartering APAC Renewables