ABS has granted approval in principle to Friede and Goldman for its coordinated design for a wind turbine installation vessel in conjunction with the BargeRack feeder barge.
(Courtesy Friede & Goldman)
BargeRack
Offshore staff
HOUSTON – ABS has granted approval in principle (AIP) to Friede and Goldman (F&G) for its coordinated design for a wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) in conjunction with the BargeRack feeder barge.
The design enables the Jones Act-compliant barge in a lifting system that F&G says reduces motion and increases the window of operational time. The design was reviewed in accordance with the ABS 2017 Guidance Notes on Review and Approval of Novel Concepts.
Greg Lennon, ABS Vice President, Global Offshore Wind, said: “To achieve the scale of US offshore wind market by 2030, the industry will be reliant on the delivery of the variety of vessels that will be needed to install and maintain the turbines, while navigating various port constraints… This design from F&G is the latest where we are proud to be able to assist with our extensive knowledge of US regulations and our deep involvement with the entire offshore wind supply chain here in the US.”
Robert Clague, vice president of Engineering at F&G, said: “Typical feeder solutions are inherently risky due to feeder vessel motions with the impact on equipment transfer. We’ve solved this problem by completely eliminating the feeder vessel motion, as well as reducing the feeder vessel cost by an order of magnitude compared to other feeder vessels.”
