Offshore staff
RICHMOND, Virginia – The keel for Dominion Energy’s offshore wind turbine installation vessel Charybdis has been laid at the Keppel AmFELS shipyard in Brownsville, Texas.
This will be the first Jones Act-compliant offshore wind turbine installation vessel. Its hull and infrastructure will use more than 14,000 tons of domestic steel, with nearly 10,000 tons sourced from Alabama and West Virginia suppliers, according to Dominion Energy.
The vessel’s hull will have a length of 472 ft (144 m), a width of 184 ft (56 m) and a depth of 38 ft (12 m), which is said to make it one of the biggest vessels of its kind in the world. It will have accommodations for up to 119 people.
Designed by GustoMSC, a business unit within NOV, the vessel is expected to handle current turbine technologies as well as next generation turbine sizes of 12 MW or larger and will also be capable of the installation of foundations for turbines and other heavy lifts.
The overall project cost, inclusive of construction and commissioning and excluding financing costs, is estimated to be around $500 million, the company said.
The Charybdis is being built on the Gulf Coast and is expected to create nearly 700 direct construction jobs.
Seajacks will assist the company with construction and operations oversight.
Huisman is building the main crane which is expected to have a boom length of 426 ft (130 m) and lifting capacity of 2,200 tons.
Once constructed, the vessel will be available for charter hire, including by Dominion Energy Virginia, subject to the approval of the Virginia State Corporation Commission, in connection with the installation of its Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind commercial project.
The Charybdis will be based out of Hampton Roads, Virginia, with a US crew.
12/17/2020
