Orsted launches US offshore wind's first American-made service operations vessel, Eco Edison
262-foot ship took its maiden voyage in the Port of New Orleans and will eventually serve as a floating residence for 60 sea-based technicians
“The Gulf Coast region is playing a huge role in the growing US offshore wind supply chain,” said David Hardy, CEO Americas at Orsted, adding that it was an example of the developer's “more than $20bn of investments” in the US
Orsted is leading development of the 704MW Revolution project to Connecticut and Rhode Island poised to begin offshore construction this month, along with the already completed 132MW South Fork and recently approved 920MW Sunrise, both to New York.
While the price tag hasn't been revealed, research consultancy Intelatus Global Partners finds US-built SOVs come in around $100m.
We “have now delivered a US-first vessel that will support offshore wind energy for years to come for our trusted partners at Orsted,” said Gary Chouest, president of Edison Chouest Offshore.
The vessel will serve as a floating, year-round homebase for 60 wind turbine technicians, who will work at-sea over the life of the array, servicing and maintaining the turbines.
Shipbuilding boom
Offshore wind is sparking a generational opportunity in the US shipbuilding sector, industry watchers say.
Renewables advocate American Clean Power Association (ACP) is tracking at least 40 vessels either under construction or retrofit for offshore wind, which trade group Oceantic Network estimates amounts to $1.6bn in investment.
The US shipbuilding industry delivers vessels at far higher costs than global peers, however, even compared to high-cost European yards.
European-built SOVs cost less than $70, according to Intelatus, while US-built crew transfer vessels routinely cost twice as much and take twice as long compared to Europe.
This raises Capex costs in the US, driving up offtake contracts and ultimately hitting ratepayers.
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