A2Sea names Westernmost Rough vessel

DENMARK: A2Sea has christened its second new build jack-up vessel as it prepares to carry out work on the Westermouth Rough wind farm.

by Patrick Smith 11 December 2013

The Sea Challenger at its inauguration at Nantong ship yard

The vessel, which has been specifically designed for the installation of offshore turbines, will be called Sea Challenger.

It is expected to start the installation of 35 Siemens 6MW turbines at Westermost Rough off England's east coast in July 2014.

This is the second wind-installation-specific jack-up vessel built by Chinese company Cosco Shipyard Group for A2Sea, after it built the almost identical Sea Installer.

However, the new vessel features a larger crane that can lift up to 900 tonnes — 100 tonnes more than its sister vessel.

The company said that the increased lifting capacity will meet the trend toward even larger turbines engineered for offshore use.

The Sea Challenger is also able to operate at depths of up to 45 metres.