North Star has held a naming ceremony for the Grampian Tyne service operation vessel (SOV) that will be deployed at the 3.6 GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm in the UK.
The vessel was named at Equinor’s Port of Tyne base in the North East of England ahead of its early handover to the Dogger Bank Wind Farm.
The traditional good luck celebration, involving the customary champagne bottle being smashed against the hull of the ship, was successfully carried out by the ship’s godmother, Lindsay Gordon, wife of North Star CEO, Matthew Gordon.
The Grampian Tyne SOV is of VARD 4 12-design and is one of four destined for decade-long minimum charters to support operations and maintenance (O&M) work at the Dogger Bank offshore wind farm, which is being developed by Equinor, SSE Renewables, and Vårgrøn.
Once fully completed, the offshore wind farm will be the largest in the world, producing enough electricity to power six million British homes.
The Grampian Tyne is equipped with medium-speed MGO power generation gensets with hybrid battery architecture in-built, coupled with Voith-Schneider eVSP propulsion package to maximise the operating envelope offshore, reduce fuel burn and improve comfort for all on board, said North Star.
The inclusion of a side-loading logistics concept allows quayside reloading directly to the SOV-covered main deck warehouse facility for both the client’s cargo and ship’s stores safely and efficiently, according to the shipowner.
The SOV is equipped with a bespoke new concept and designed daughter craft for effective high performance, safe and efficient offshore support of technician and cargo deployment, engineered to perform in up to 1.7m Hs sea-state, North Star added.
All three remaining hybrid-electric powered SOV newbuilds, being built by VARD, are on track for being operational at Dogger Bank A, B, and C by 2026.
“We congratulate North Star with the naming ceremony of their first vessel in their renewable fleet. We are delighted that they chose VARD on their way to a sustainable future in the industry, and happy to deliver Grampian Tyne before schedule,” said Alberto Maestrini, CEO of VARD.
In August last year, North Star launched the first of four hybrid-powered daughter crafts that will be used on the Dogger Bank offshore wind farm. The vessels are designed in collaboration with Chartwell Marine and are built by Alicat Workboats in Great Yarmouth.
Last month, North Star contracted VARD for up to a further four new offshore wind vessels. The new commissioning service operation vessels (CSOVs) take the company a step closer to its ambition of expanding its fleet with 40 renewables fleet to support the growing UK and European markets, the shipowner said.
