Seatrium AmFELS of Brownsville, Texas, has begun conducting sea trials of Charybdis, a new wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) ordered from the company by Dominion Energy.
Upon completion, the self-elevating WTIV will be deployed at the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project site 27 miles (43 kilometres) off the coast of Virginia Beach, Virginia. The vessel will support installation works at the wind farm, which will have 176 turbines and a total output of 2.6 GW.
The WTIV will later be available for charter hire to offshore wind developers in support of several wind projects along the US East Coast. In particular, it will be able to transport and install wind turbines of up to 12 MW capacity.
The 472-foot (144-metre) Charybdis will also be equipped with a 2,200-tonne-capable main deck crane and will have accommodation for 119 personnel.
The new WTIV will be operated by Blue Ocean Energy Marine, a subsidiary of Dominion Energy.