BigLift Shipping’s heavy transport vessel MV BigLift Baffin recently delivered 38 jacket foundations at Iberdrola’s 496 MW Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm, off the coast of France.
The 38 foundations were picked up from the manufacturing site in El Ferrol, Spain and transported to Van Oord’s offshore installation vessel Aeolus in the Bay of Saint-Brieuc for the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm, located 16.3 kilometres off the coast of Brittany.
Between June 4 and October 5, the Module Carriers (MC)-class vessel executed ten shipments carrying the jacket foundations on deck. Eight shipments with four and two with three pieces on deck. The three-legged jackets are 70 metres high and each weighs approximately 1,100 mt. The jackets were lifted and seafastened on to purpose-built quick-release systems to minimize time during the lifting operation in the field. Out at sea, the jackets were discharged by Van Oord’s Aeolus while Biglift Baffin stayed in position using her DP2 system.
This was the first project where BigLift Baffin deployed her DP2 configuration. The area near the Channel Islands is renowned for its large tidal range, which means that high current speeds must be counteracted by the DP system. Furthermore, due to the height of the jackets, the vessel experienced large windage on top of the high current. Despite the extremely challenging conditions, the DP system performed excellently. This project was an example of an extremely fast-track project with limited time for preparation. Image: BigLift Shipping
