World-first amphibious crew transfer vessel to make its debut at RWE windfarm

The vessel is now under construction and is being built by Isle of Wight, UK-based boatbuilder Diverse Marine. It will be operated for RWE by CRC via a six-year contract.

CRC director Stuart Hedges said his company signed a contract with Diverse Marine in December 2021 and expects the vessel to be operational at Scroby in September 2022.

The vessel is to be named CRC Walrus in honour of RJ Mitchells’ classic 1930’s Supermarine amphibious biplane. It has two wheels at the front and one at the back and is capable of transferring 10 technicians and two crew to any of the turbines at Scroby Sands, including on the raised sandbank. CRC Walrus is a 12-m, type-approved CTV with a 1,000-kg deck cargo capacity.

The 60-MW Scroby Sands windfarm was one of the first of a group of projects to be built in the UK, all in coastal locations with shallow waters close to shore. It was built on a sandbank and, because of natural changes in the marine environment and coastal erosion, this has risen over time effectively isolating four turbines from being accessed by conventional vessels.

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