Japan's Mitsui O.S.K. Line has concluded a time charter contract with Shimizu Corporation for two crew transfer vessels (CTV) for an offshore wind farm at Ishikari Bay New Port.
"This marks the MOL Group’s first entry into the CTV business. In addition, one of the CTVs, The KAZEHAYA, owned by MOL, is the first CTV in Japan managed and operated under International Safety Management (ISM) Code, which is the international standard of ship safety management system, certified by Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK )," MOL said.
MOL Group company MOL Coastal Shipping, Ltd. will operate the CTVs, which will support the construction and operation of the project, transporting workers to and from the offshore wind farm.
CTVs operate from a base port to bring maintenance engineers to offshore wind farms that are relatively close to shore. The fenders attached to the bow of the vessel are pressed against the offshore wind turbine to stabilize the hull, allowing personnel to board the wind turbine platform. Aluminum catamarans are the mainstream hull type.
The vessels chartered for the Ishikari Bay New Port wind farm are set to start service later in June.
The offshore wind farm is being developed by a special purpose company (SPC) called Green Power Ishikari, established in February 2016 by Green Power Investment Corporation.
The installation of 14 units of 8 MW wind turbines manufactured by Siemens Gamesa, will take place at an offshore site with an area of approximately 500 hectares.
"The Japanese government has declared its target of achieving carbon neutrality, which means zero overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. Offshore wind power is positioned as an important future source of electricity, and construction of offshore wind power facilities is expected to begin in earnest around 2026. The MOL Group will use this project as a foothold to deepen its knowledge of CTV operation and contribute to the wider development and use of offshore wind power generation," MOL said.
The two vessels, JCAT Three and Kazehaya were constructed by Damen Shipyard Gorinchem. Each vessel is 26,3 meters long, with 10-meter breadth and capacity to carry 12 passengers.
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