North Star taps Cochin Shipyard for Siemens Gamesa-backed SOV newbuild
UK OSV owner and operator North Star has sealed a deal with turbine maker Siemens Gamesa for a hybrid service operations vessel (SOV) bound for long-term charter at the East Anglia Three offshore wind farm off the Suffolk coast in England.
The vessel, which will be built at Cochin Shipyard in India, adds an eighth hybrid offshore wind unit to the company’s renewables fleet since it expanded into the market two-and-a-half years ago. The state-owned Cochin revealed a contract for one firm and two optional hybrid SOVs earlier this month without naming the owner.
The SOV will be of Vard 4 19 design in addition to North Star’s other Vard-designed unit under construction at the same yard, which will be delivered to EnBW on a decade-long charter for the He Dreiht wind farm off Germany.
The East Anglia Three wind farm will have a total capacity of 1,400 MW, generating green electricity to power the equivalent of more than 1.3m homes. The new SOV, which will be able to accommodate up to 60 wind technicians, is due to be delivered to Siemens Gamesa in late 2026. The contract will be front run by one of North Star’s two commissioning SOVs, the Kestrel starting in April of the same year.
