High-spec CSOV's technical ‘firsts’

The first of the pair of vessels recently became the subject of a contract with Ocean Breeze Energy in Germany.

The yard highlighted a number of ‘firsts’ in the ship’s propulsion and other features that will dramatically reduce their environmental impact.

“All of the CSOV’s systems have been designed to optimise the energy efficiency of the vessels, minimising their carbon footprint and allowing for stable and safe operation, even in adverse weather conditions,” said Gondan.

As previously highlighted by OWJ, the vessels are the first to be designed to incorporate technology that will allow for ‘zero emissions’ operation in the future in the form of hydrogen fuel cells. This technology will be incorporated into the vessels at a later date.

But the ships have other fuel saving and emissions reducing features. They will be the first with Siemens’ Blue Drive + C Star diesel-electric propulsion system, which reduces fuel consumption, and the first equipped with eVSP propellers from Voith.

In the eVSP, a permanent-magnet electric motor is directly integrated into the Voith propulsor. This achieves significant reductions in weight and in fuel consumption while minimising noise levels.

The vessels will also have a 5-tonne, 24-m outreach 3D motion-compensated Colibri crane, and an electrically-powered gangway and elevator with an integrated remote control system with energy recovery capability. The yard said this capability would enable it to "store excess energy from the ship’s battery pack to meet peaks in power demand."

The highly advanced design also has a heat recovery system which further enhances energy consumption and provides a further reduction in fuel consumption and emissions.

The vessels will also employ stabilisation systems when in static and dynamic positioning mode.