US-based Dominion Energy has placed an order at Singapore’s Keppel Offshore & Marine for the construction of a wind turbine installation vessel.
The vessel, which will be named Charybdis, is being built by the Keppel AmFELS yard in the US and will be Jones Act compliant. Delivery is scheduled in 2023.
The vessel will be available for charter hire to offshore wind developers to support US wind projects. It is designed to handle current turbine technologies as well as next generation turbine sizes of 12 megawatts or larger, and will also be capable of the installation of foundations for turbines and other heavy lifts.
“We are pleased to be selected by Dominion Energy to build the first offshore wind turbine installation vessel in the US, which is also one of the largest vessels of its kind in the world. It is a testament to the capabilities of our shipyard in building a wide variety of vessels for the Jones Act market. Keppel AmFELS is proud to be a pioneer in providing offshore wind infrastructure solutions in the US with our partner Dominion Energy,” said Chris Ong, CEO of Keppel O&M.
“Dominion Energy is proud to be leading a consortium of respected industry participants in the construction of the first Jones Act compliant offshore wind turbine installation vessel, which will provide significant American jobs, and provide a reliable, home-grown installation solution with the capacity to handle the next generation of large-scale, highly-efficient turbine technologies,” said Robert Blue, Dominion Energy’s president and CEO.
