Vard, one of the first companies in the world in the construction of special vessels, has signed the contract for the design and construction of a further Service Operation Vessel (SOV) for the British company North Star, which has already ordered three ships of the same type.
The unit will join the owner's hybrid-propulsion fleet at the end of 2024. Like the previous ones, it will also serve the Dogger Bank wind farm, about 130 kilometers off the east coast of England, in the Sea of the North, which includes three areas (A, B and C) and once completed it will be the largest in the world.
The Dogger Bank A and B project is a joint venture between SSE Renewables (40%), Equinor (40%) and Eni (20%). In November 2021 SSE Renewables and Equinor, also partners of the 50/50 joint venture in the Dogger Bank C project, announced that Eni will acquire a 20% stake in the third phase, with SSE Renewables and Equinor holding 40% of the shares each. The deal is expected to be finalized by the first quarter of 2022, subject to regulatory approvals.
The success allows Vard to further strengthen its position in this particular sector of the offshore market and in that of special high performance vessels even in the most demanding environmental conditions. The offshore renewable energy sector is in a transition phase from a European-only industry to a global market. Having already developed numerous concept of this type of unit, Vard will be able to take advantage of the growing trend of the sector, in which important activities are emerging that are preparing to be launched both in Asia and in North America, in addition to a still high level of investments in Europe, as shown by the result reached today by the Norwegian company.
