General – CSOV
China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu) has handed over the first commissioning service operation vessel (CSOV) in a series of six ordered by Norwegian offshore support company Integrated Wind Solutions (IWS) for operation by its subsidiary IWS Fleet.
The Kongsberg Maritime-designed IWS Skywalker has an LOA of 91 metres, a beam of 19.6 metres, a draught of 5.9 metres, a gross tonnage of 6,918, a deadweight tonnage of 2,000, and accommodations for 30 crewmembers plus up to 90 additional personnel.
The vessel also features a hybrid propulsion system with IMO Tier III variable-speed engines, a large 2.2MWh battery pack with solar panels for charging, a fully integrated and compensated walk-to-work gangway, and a 3D compensated knuckle boom crane that can lift cargo fully compensated from the vessel deck to a fixed or floating wind turbine or perform subsea operations for the balance of plant scope.
The open aft deck has a total area of 400 square metres while the warehouse has 420 square metres. Fitted at the stern is a stepless boat landing to ensure safe transfer to and from smaller crew boats that ferry personnel between the CSOV and wind turbines. Space is also available for a helicopter deck and a 12.5-metre-long daughter craft with seating for up to 12 technicians.
