World’s first hybrid daughter craft for offshore wind to be built in UK

The world’s first hybrid daughter craft vessels designed to support the offshore wind market are to be built in the UK through a new multi-million pound deal.

Aberdeen-headquartered North Star Renewables has confirmed that the contract for its vessel design, developed in collaboration with Southampton-based naval architects Chartwell Marine, will be awarded to a UK shipyard in September.

The initial contract for two newly designed hybrid vessels will be built to complement North Star’s service operation vessel (SOV) fleet and will be delivered in 2022 and 2023. The hull form, equipment selection, innovation features, and comfort will all be focused specifically to suit the demands of offshore wind operations.

Once the daughter craft are delivered, they will be operated by North Star crews.