To suit its newest offshore wind turbine installation vessel Voltaire, Jan De Nul needed an offshore crane with unprecedented capacity and lifting height and selected Huisman for the job.
Huisman won the contract for the design, engineering, construction and delivery of the main crane on the Voltaire, which will be a leg encircling crane. The vessel will be built by Cosco Shipping Heavy Industry in China and the crane will be built at Huisman’s own production facility in Xiamen, P.R. of China, and installed at the shipyard.
Unrivalled Crane Capacity and Lifting Height
The crane will be unique in its size, capacity and novel features to allow efficient installation of the next generation offshore wind turbines. With an unrivalled crane capacity of over 3000 tonnes and an evenly unrivalled lifting height, it is the biggest leg encircling crane ever installed on a wind turbine installation vessel and together with its flyjib will have the highest lifting height in the world.
Next Generation Offshore Wind Turbines
Next generation offshore wind turbines can be more than 270 m high and are fitted with blades of 120 m long. Offshore installation vessels currently available on the market face difficulties installing these types of turbines due to the turbines’ sizes and installation heights, as well as the ever-increasing foundation dimensions.
Setting Records
It is not the first time Huisman builds a record-breaking piece of equipment for Jan De Nul. The new contract is the second project in a row between Jan De Nul and Huisman following a project to develop and produce the world’s largest monopile gripper in a record period for Jan De Nul’s Vole au vent, another wind turbine installation vessel. This project was awarded mid 2018 and will be delivered in the upcoming months.
