Les Alizés

ALL IMAGES COURTESY OF JAN DE NUL.

An important milestone has recently been reached in the construction of Les Alizés, the Next-Gen foating ofshore installation vessel for ofshore renewables and decommissioning. Jan De Nul launched Les Alizés at the CMHI Haimen shipyard in China. This vessel will be the largest Heavy Lift Vessel in Jan De Nul’s feet, able to install XXL ofshore wind components, in foating conditions and with ultra-low emissions.

The launch of Les Alizés started on 2 January by fooding the dry dock in which the vessel was built. Once afoat, Les Alizés was moored alongside the adjacent quay wall. On 5 January, the ofcial launching ceremony took place at the CMHI Haimen shipyard, in the presence of the shipyard management and Jan De Nul Group representatives.

The fnal phase of the vessel’s construction can now begin, including sea trials. Les Alizés is due for delivery in H2 2022, in good time for her frst assignment in Germany for the construction of Gode Wind 3 and Borkum Rifgrund 3 Ofshore Wind Farms, transporting and installing 107 monopile foundations for the ofshore wind major Ørsted.

Philippe Hutse, Director Ofshore Division at Jan De Nul Group says, “The construction of our ofshore foating installation vessel Les Alizés is well on track. We can look forward to delivery later this year, so that we can continue to build the future of ofshore renewable energy. Together with our Ofshore Jack-Up Installation Vessel Voltaire, which is also under construction in China, we will have the perfect set of ofshore installation vessels that will be able to install current and future generations of ofshore wind farms. This is how we ofer our customers the most efcient installation solutions and results.” >>

The impressive crane of ofshore jack-up installation vessels allows safe installation of heavy foundations and components of ofshore wind farms. This type of vessel is equipped with legs to lift itself above the sea level. As a result, it can work in a stable way, without being impacted by the waves.

Following her order at the end of 2019, the design of Les Alizés has been further fne-tuned. The vessel is taking shape thanks to the investments in innovative mission equipment, enabling Jan De Nul to ofer solutions for the next generation ofshore wind installation challenges while improving safety and efciency:

– A highly innovative crane with

Universal Quick Connector (UQC): this crane will be among the largest in its class. The crane will utilize a

Universal Quick Connector (UQC), developed by Huisman, and leveraging the expertise of Jan De

Nul’s operational and engineering teams. The result is a groundbreaking innovative UQC, that will deliver a major step change in safer ofshore lifting activities. – An innovative motion-compensated pile gripper: the highly advanced electrical gripper, with an integrated guidance and survey system, will allow safe and efcient installation of next-generation monopiles with pinpoint accuracy. – A fully automated monopile handling system: the tailor-made system consists of a set of cradles, a skidding system and an upending hinge to handle and install XXL monopiles. It is ideally suited to work in challenging weather conditions and high sea states.

Jan Van De Velde, Head of Newbuilding Department at Jan De Nul Group says, “It is our continued philosophy to focus on operational efciency and improving safety as the main objectives. The Universal Quick Connector, the innovative Motion-Compensated Pile Gripper and the fully automated Monopile Installation System perfectly ft into our strategy of having no manual deck intervention during installation. We stay one step ahead in ofering the renewables industry a safe and efcient one-stop-shop installation solution.”

In order to reduce the vessel’s CO2 emissions, the power plant on board is a hybrid setup. The arrangement combines diesel-driven generators with

battery and drive technology to optimize engine loading and to recover the potential energy returned from the heavy lift crane. To further reduce the carbon footprint of installation activities, the ultra-low emission vessel can run on second-generation biodiesel that reduces the fuel carbon footprint by up to 90%.

As an ultra-low emission vessel, Les Alizés is equipped with a highly advanced dual exhaust flter system, removing up to 99% of nanoparticles from emissions using a diesel particulate flter (DPF) and reducing the NOx emissions and other pollutants by means of a selective catalytic reduction system (SCR) to levels in accordance with EU Stage V regulation. Les Alizés and Voltaire will be the frst two seaworthy installation vessels in the world with extremely low emissions.

Category Flag Length overall Breadth Jack-up vessel, heavy maintenance and construction Luxembourg 169.3m, 181.78 m (incl. helideck) 60m

Maximum draught Moulded depth DWT max Built in

7.5m 14.6m 21,500t China

Crane make Max. crane lifting capacity Lifting height above deck Aux. hoist Cargo deck Max. deck load Max. payload Jack-up system Max. water depth Leg length Area of spud cans Huisman More than 3,000t 162.5m 250t at 135m 7,000m² 20t/m² 16,000t Rack and pinion Abt 80m Abt 130m 4 x 250m²

Main gen. sets Emergency gen. set Emissions

Retractable thrusters Bow thrusters Max. speed

Diesel engines: 4 x 3,535kW, 4 x 2,650kW, 3 x 6,600V, 50Hz 600kW ULEv IMO Tier III, Euro stage VInland Waterway (using DPF) Main Propulsion 4 x azimuth thrusters 3,000kW 2 x 2,600kW 2 x 2,600kW 11.5kn

Accommodation Heli deck 100 single cabins D 22.8m, MTOW 14.6t, Sikorsky S-61N, S-92 and Agusta-Westland EH-101