Together with its Taiwanese partner CSBC, Belgian offshore contractor DEME has given the go-ahead for the construction of another installation vessel. The Green Jade, as the vessel will be called, will feature a 4,000-tonne crane and is being built by CSBC in Kaohsiung. 

The ship will be over 200 metres long and should be ready in two years time. It is the first floating DP3 heavy-lift and installation vessel to be built in Taiwan. According to DEME, the Green Jade offers “an exceptional combination of high transport and load capacity, impressive lifting heights and green technology.”

Such characteristics are also attributed to DEME’s vessel Orion, which suffered an accident during the ultimate load test in at Liebherr’s production facility in Rostock, Germany, last month. The crane hook broke at only half of its rated maximum load of 5,000 tonnes, causing the crane to collapse. It is still unclear what the exact cause of the accident was and how long it will take to repair the damage. DEME has not yet announced which company will manufacture Green Jade’s crane.

Two projects

With its combination of high load and lifting capacity, Green Jade will enable CDWE and its customers to transport a multitude of the heaviest monopiles, jackets, wind turbine components and structures in a single shipment, the company states. 

The vessel will be deployed for both the Hai Long Offshore Wind Project and at Zhong Neng for Zhong Neng Wind Power Corporation Preparatory Office. CDWE signed Taiwan’s first comprehensive, large-scale Balance of Plant Preferred Supplier Agreement with Hai Long Offshore Wind Project in October 2019 and for Zhong Neng, the contracts comprise the transportation and installation of foundations, as well as a Preferred Bidder Agreement for the transportation and installation of the wind turbines.

Joint venture

The Belgian company set up the CDWE joint venture with the CSBC shipbuilding group in Taiwan two years ago. It now acts as the client for the project and has won two contracts for installation work at the Hai Long Offshore Wind Project and at Zhong Neng for Zhong Neng Wind Power Corporation Preparatory Office.

With the Green Jade, the joint venture seeks to meet “the trend towards larger capacity turbines and bigger wind farm projects, which deliver energy at lower costs”, says Robert Tseng, CDWE Chairman. “Green Jade will be capable of installing mega monopiles and jacket structures at greater water depths. With DP3 technology, this special offshore installation vessel can continue operations under the most challenging conditions.”