Neptune Marine is currently building a new, next generation, multi-purpose shallow draught vessel for N-Sea’s cable installation activities. The vessel is under construction in Poland and will transfer to the Netherlands in Q4 2025 for fitting and commissioning in Q2 2026.
The newly built DP2 vessel Altera will be dual-fuel (methanol) prepared, equipped with a 25-tonne offshore knuckle boom crane, mooring system and can accommodate up to 99 people.
Due to the combination of its mooring system, DP2 capabilities and beaching capacities, the vessel will be able to operate year round in both very shallow and deep water conditions, on interconnector, export and inter-array cable projects.
Also read: N-Sea acquires survey company Geo Plus
Specially designed deck spread
The deck spread has been designed and procured by N-Sea, considering valuable lessons learned by the N-Sea team over the last fifteen years, in cable repair and installation on offshore wind and interconnector projects. The 4500-tonne carousel, 15-tonne tensioner, quadrant handling system and shutes have been designed to handle cables with minimum bending radius till 5 metres.
Installation of the deck spread will start in Q1 2026 by the N-Sea mobilisation team in the Netherlands, managed from the new offshore supply base and logistic centre in IJmuiden.
Second vessel under construction at Neptune
N-Sea specialises in subsea cable installation, repairs and replacements and currently has a fleet of twelve vessels, according to its website. In July 2024, N-Sea acquired Geo Plus, including this company;s fleet of five highly specialised survey vessels.
In addition to the Altera, Neptune Marine is also building another vessel for N-Sea, the Geo Master. This vessel will be similar to the hybrid survey and ROV support vessel Geo Ranger and is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2026 and is expected to be operational by mid-March 2026.
Picture by Neptune Marine.
Also read: Neptune’s Canopée bags 2023 Ship of the Year Award
