Offshore wind maintenance and support services company SAL Renewables, part of German shipping and logistics group Harren & Partner, has changed its name to Atheleon.
SAL Renewables acquired jackup vessels Wind Lift I and Thor in 2021 and 2022 and completed a number of projects in and around the waters of northern Europe. Atheleon will continue to market the vessels, together with special vessels such as the Mexican Giant and the VB-10,000 and its cooperation with Wind Multiplikator and OWS Offshore Wind Solutions will also continue unaffected by the name change.
The move to change the name comes as SAL Renewables and its sister company, SAL Heavy Lift, were too closely associated as brands, explained Heiko Felderhoff, managing director of the Harren Group and Atheleon. “We see that the time is right to continue our successful journey in the offshore sector under a strong, new and independent name – Atheleon. SAL Heavy Lift holds a leading strategic position within project shipping, and we want to ensure that our customers understand the difference in our service offerings,” he said.
Atheleon is a unique fictional name inspired by history: the Greek goddess of wisdom, Athena, and the mythological giant, Leon, who is said to have fought Hercules. “We thought it suited our offshore entity, which, while still small in a global context, holds a certain strength in its own right. We utilise the great know-how we have in-house to operate successfully in this sector and see great prospects for Atheleon looking forward,” Felderhoff added.
The company said it is also looking at the US offshore wind sector, with work in progress to bring a Jones Act-compliant offshore wind installation vessel to market in 2026. The so-called Feederdock concept is designed to support the installation of foundation weights of up to 2,800 t and future wind turbine generations with an anticipated capacity of 25 MW and more.
Commenting on the SAL Renewables rebranding, Harren Group CEO Martin Harren said: “Wind energy has become an increasingly important cornerstone of our business in recent years. Atheleon is the next logical and consistent step to further expanding our commitment in this segment.”
