Crowley and Danish offshore maritime leader ESVAGT will jointly build and operate a service operations vessel (SOV) under a long-term charter with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, enhancing a service crucial for the U.S. clean wind energy market, according to Crowley's release.
Under the new contract, U.S.-based Crowley will manage and crew the SOV to support Siemens Gamesa’s service operations on the Dominion Energy Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project. ESVAGT, based in Denmark, will support Crowley with design, construction, crew training and operation services as part of the two companies’ joint venture, CREST Wind, created in 2021.
The 289-foot vessel will feature state-of-the-art technologies to augment safety, workability and comfort to support the O&M activities of the wind farm project. It will have modern accommodations for 80 crew and technicians. Consistent with federal law, the vessel will be U.S. built when it enters service in 2026.
Recognized as the largest operator of SOVs in Europe, ESVAGT has established its industry leadership in SOV concept and innovation development that provides efficient operations with safety and support for personnel at offshore wind projects.
Dominion Energy plans to construct 176 14.7 MW Siemens Gamesa wind turbines and three offshore substations, generating enough clean, renewable energy to power up to 660,000 homes. It would avoid 5 million tons per year of carbon emissions compared with fossil fuel usage for power.
The SOV advances Crowley’s full spectrum of solutions for offshore wind. The company is developing offshore wind terminals in California and Massachusetts. Crowley also offers feedering vessels, supply chain management solutions and workforce development programming built on more than 130 years of marine solutions.
Crowley is a privately held, U.S.-owned and -operated maritime, energy and logistics solutions company serving commercial and government sectors with more than $3.2 billion in annual revenues, over 170 vessels mostly in the Jones Act fleet and approximately 7,000 employees around the world – employing more U.S. mariners than any other company. The crowley enterprise has invested more than $3.2 billion in maritime transport, which is the backbone of global trade and the global economy. As a global ship owner-operator and services provider with more than 130 years of innovation and a commitment to sustainability, the company serves customers in 36 nations and island territories through five business units: Crowley Logistics, Crowley Shipping, Crowley Solutions, Crowley Wind Services and Crowley Fuels.
ESVAGT is a provider of safety and support services for the offshore energy industry. ESVAGT was founded in 1981 and has a fleet of more than 40 vessels and approximately 1200 employees offshore and onshore. ESVAGT pioneered the SOV concept with its clients in 2010 and is today the largest operator of state-of-the-art SOVs and associated services.