Norwegian firm to supply vessel for Deepwater Wind installation

THE BRAVE TERN, pictured above, is a self-propelled, 433-foot jack-up rig owned by Fred. Olsen Windcarrier and identical to the Bold Tern, which will serve as the platform for wind-turbine installation at the Block Island Wind Farm. / COURTESY FRED. OLSEN WINDCARRIER
THE BRAVE TERN, pictured above, is a self-propelled, 433-foot jack-up rig owned by Fred. Olsen Windcarrier and identical to the Bold Tern, which will serve as the platform for wind-turbine installation at the Block Island Wind Farm. / COURTESY FRED. OLSEN WINDCARRIER

PROVIDENCE – Deepwater Wind LLC has contracted with Norwegian offshore-wind transport ship owner Fred. Olsen Windcarrier to provide the vessel for turbine installation at the Block Island Wind Farm, the company announced in a release Friday.

The Bold Tern is a self-propelled, 433-foot jack-up rig with a typical payload of 6,600 tons. Once on location, the vessel can extend movable legs to raise the hull of the ship above the sea surface, transforming the Bold Tern into a service platform for wind-turbine installation.

“We are very pleased to add Fred. Olsen Windcarrier to our world-class team for the Block Island Wind Farm,” said Jeffrey Grybowski, CEO of Deepwater Wind, in a statement. “The Bold Tern is a class-leading vessel for offshore installation and Fred. Olsen Windcarrier brings deep experience in offshore construction and high standards of excellence to the work they do.”

The announcement of the contract with Fred. Olsen followed Deepwater Wind’s signing earlier this week of a contract with French manufacturer Alstom SA to supply five of its 6-megawatt Haliade 150 turbines and tower sections for the Block Island Wind Farm.

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Fred. Olsen previously installed Alstom’s Haliade turbines at the Belwind 1 wind farm project off the coast of Belgium in the North Sea.

“We are truly delighted to be installing this significant project which is driving forward the offshore wind industry in the United States,” said Ketil Arvesen of Fred. Olsen. “We have already established a very good relationship with the people in the project team at Deepwater Wind and we will once again be working with Alstom to install their impressive 6-megawatt turbine.”

The release issued by Deepwater Wind said the project “remains on track to be among the nation’s first offshore wind farms,” but did not provide further details about when Deepwater expects to complete the project. A previous release issued early Friday morning by Norwegian holding company Ganger Rolf ASA, a shareholder of Fred. Olsen, stated that the installation contract would be carried out in the third quarter of 2016.

Grybowski has said previously that the target date to have the five-turbine Block Island Wind Farm producing energy is 2015, but that could slip to 2016.

According to the release issued by Ganger Rolf, the contract has a duration of 65 days, plus extensions of up to 48 days.

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