Damen Shipyards, Windcat and CMB.TECH are celebrating the launch of the first of six Commissioning Service Operation Vessels (CSOV), according to Damen's release. The launch marks the inauguration of Windcat’s ‘Elevation Series’ of future-proof offshore wind farm maintenance and support vessels, which have been designed in close collaboration with Windcat and CMB.TECH.
The launch ceremony took place on 12 October at Ha Long Shipyard in Vietnam, where Damen is constructing all six CSOVs. With this first CSOV in the water, Damen will continue with its outfitting and commissioning operations to prepare the vessel for delivery in Q2 2025. Damen, Windcat and CMB.TECH first announced their intention to develop and build a series of offshore wind farm support vessels together back in 2022.
After an initial contract for two ships, Windcat increased the order to six vessels, with the last contract being signed mid-2024.
Compared to earlier designs of offshore wind farm support vessel, this CSOV represents advances in efficiency, performance and comfort. The 87-metre long vessel is designed around best in class offshore performance, with various new technologies on board to achieve this. The vessel will accommodate up to 120 people on board, remaining at its offshore location to provide in-field technical and maintenance support for up to 30 days at a time. Particular attention has been given to provide offshore personnel with the most comfortable conditions to live and work during their time on board.
Reducing CO2 emissions further, the Damen / Windcat / CMB.TECH cooperation has taken a proactive stance on the subject of future fuels. The consequence of this is that, thanks to CMB.TECH’s dual fuel hydrogen technology, the entire series of six vessels will be able to use hydrogen as a fuel, increasing this hydrogen use as the energy market progresses.