Wind Energy – Vineyard Wind
Vineyard Wind yesterday shipped the first GE Haliade-X Wind Turbine Generator (WTG) from the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal to its location more than 30 miles off the coast of Cape Cod.
Foss Maritime, a US service contractor that provides union jobs for its employees, has partnered with DEME Offshore US to design and build highly 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 massive Haliade-X turbine components that when constructed will rise more than 700 feet.
The barges utilize a specially designed technology that uses a patented control system and cylinders that support a platform and actively compensate the motions of the barge. The wind turbine components are fastened to the motion compensated platform for a smooth ride in ocean conditions.
“It may look easy, but the safe transportation of these components miles over the open water is no small feat,” said Vineyard Wind CEO Klaus S. Moeller. “While we’ve had many firsts, once this turbine is installed, it will stand as a proud symbol of American’s energy transition.”
GE will initially load the U.S.-flagged Marmac from the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal with three vertically placed tower sections reaching more than 200 feet in height, three 321-foot-long blades and a nacelle pod that houses the generating components. Foss will deliver loads weighing more than 1,700 tons each, to construction partner DEME Group’s Sea Installer vessel with 300-foot-deep legs stationed 65 miles from New Bedford south of Martha’s Vineyard.
“DEME is proud to partner with Foss Maritime to play a critical role in deploying Vineyard’s offshore wind turbine components on specialized US-flagged barges from New Bedford to the project site offshore,” said DEME Offshore US President Bill White.
“The DEME crew on our Sea Installer vessel can’t wait to receive these components and work with the highly skilled union workers from the Massachusetts Building Trades to build America’s first large scale offshore wind project and launch this new and vital clean energy industry.”
Sea Installer, which measures more than 430 feet in length and 150 feet wide, is a heavy lift jack up crane vessel that lifts itself out of the water on legs that are over 300 feet in length. Once elevated, the vessel becomes a platform where the recently upgraded crane, now capable of lifting more than 1600 tons, can install the tower sections, nacelle and blades for each WTG.
