VESSEL REVIEW | Eros III – Catamaran crewboat to support operations at French offshore wind farm
Société Nouvelloise de Remorquage (SNR), a marine services company based in the Port of Port-la-Nouvelle in southern France, has taken delivery of a new aluminium catamaran crewboat built by local shipyard Navalu.
Named Eros III, the crewboat will be operated by SNR under a time charter contract. She will primarily support activities at the BW Ideol-operated Eolmed three-turbine wind farm located in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Aude in France’s Occitanie region.
In compliance with French flag rules, the vessel is French-owned and is crewed by French sailors.
Standard crewboat layout optimised for rough waters
According to Navalu Director Marc Pelletier, Eros III was originally ordered by an unnamed customer in the UK but was sold to SNR while it was still under construction, as the previous owner had gone bankrupt.
The crewboat was intended to be the second in a series; the first vessel in the series was completed in 2013 and is now operating in support of the Dutch offshore wind sector.
The crewboat has a length of 24 metres (79 feet), a beam of 10 metres (30 feet), a height of eight metres (26 feet), a displacement of approximately 79 tonnes, and space for up to 12 technicians and three crewmembers.
The technicians are housed in a spacious main cabin, above which is the wheelhouse. The installation of the wheelhouse guarantees unobstructed forward visibility even if the forward deck is laden with cargo.
The vessel is powered by four Caterpillar C18 main engines that each produce 800 hp (600 kW). To ensure redundancy, SNR had opted for four engines instead of only two driving two propellers via shaftlines.
Deck equipment for loading and unloading cargo
The forward deck is fitted with a knuckle boom crane as a means of loading and unloading cargo as an alternative to the bow, which also features fendering to absorb the impact when manoeuvring to embark and disembark technicians at offshore wind turbines. Located at the stern is a small A-frame.
Construction of Eros III was completed in compliance with Bureau Veritas class requirements.
