Solis Marine Supports Mobilisation of HLV Jumbo Javelin in Singapore

Project forms part of Taiwan’s first large multi-megawatt offshore wind farm

As an approved Essential Services Provider, Solis Marine was been granted a General Exemption from the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), which allowed Solis to continue on-site operations during Singapore’s “Circuit Breaker” measures introduced to limit the local spread of Covid-19.

When travel restrictions prevented Jumbo Offshore from deploying its Netherlands based offshore team to Singapore to prepare for the mobilisation of its heavy lift crane vessel, Solis Marine was well-positioned to help Jumbo Offshore overcome a difficult set of challenges and successfully keep the project on track.

Yunlin Offshore Wind Farm
Heavy lift shipping and offshore installation operator Jumbo Offshore was awarded a contract to handle the transport and installation of wind turbine generator substructures for the Yunlin Offshore Wind Farm, a renewable energy project for the Taiwanese Government.

The project is 73% owned by WPD and 27% owned by a Sojitz Corp-led consortium which also includes Chugoku Electric Power, Chudenko Corporation, Shikoku Electric Power and JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation. Yunlin is located eight kilometres off the Taiwanese west coast. When completed it will be Taiwan’s first large multi-megawatt offshore wind project.

Jumbo’s challenge – Solis’s solution
For the transport, Jumbo Offshore deploys several vessels of its heavy lift fleet. For the installation, it deploys its 144-metre DP2 Offshore Installation Vessel ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’, a dynamically-positioned heavy lift crane vessel.

To equip and prepare the vessel for the project requirements, several modifications and upgrades were required. To manage this, Jumbo Offshore had assembled its Netherlands based team of in-house offshore professionals and contracted several suppliers and subcontractors who would travel to Singapore to perform the mobilisation.

When Covid-19 safeguarding measures were introduced, preventing international travel, Jumbo Offshore approached Solis Marine in Singapore for local on the ground expert assistance.

As an Approved Essential Services Provider, Solis Marine is able to continue on-site operations in Singapore.

For the mobilisation, Solis Marine provided a Technical Superintendent/Project Manager and Port Captain/Mobilisation Supervisor who worked closely with an Electrical Engineer who was locally contracted by Jumbo Offshore.

From the start of the project at the end of April 2020 until its successful completion in June, Singapore’s Covid-19 lockdown presented a series of challenges. A significant surge in coronavirus cases among foreign workers living in local dormitories led to a shortage of available welders, fitters and electrical engineers and the closure of most shipyards.

Also, several specialist subcontractors in three other countries were unable to travel to Singapore meaning that local subcontractors with the necessary general exemption from the MTI had to be sourced and engaged.

Close co-operation and co-ordination with Jumbo Offshore’s Dutch team and its sub-contractors based in the Netherlands, Denmark, the UK and Singapore, overcame multiple hurdles, leading to the successful mobilisation of ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’ for her assignment.

In the final stages of the mobilisation of ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’, Solis Marine also assisted Jumbo Offshore with the on-hire and mobilisation of an Anchor Handling Towage Supply (AHTS) vessel which will assist ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’ on the project.

Mobilisation Scope
The main mobilisation scope included:

• Positioning and installation of five Offshore Wind Transition Piece (TP) grillages.
• Onboard installation of Jumbo’s Offshore Accommodation (JOA), additional lifeboats, life-rafts, Fast Rescue Craft (FRC) and certification by Lloyds for ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’ to accommodate an additional 72 pax offshore professionals for the duration of the offshore installation project.
• Onboard installation, sling hoist modification and re-certification by Lloyds of Jumbo’s modular Fly-jib, enabling an extension of the vessels crane’s lifting height with an impressive lifting capacity of 700t WLL.
• Installation of an additional six containerised generators, one switchboard container, two fuel containers and cable installations being part of an electrical upgrade to provide additional electrical power to the vessel’s DP2 system.
• Extension of the vessel’s working deck on the Portside and Starboard aft.
• Installation of four anchor handling winches and their control system being part of an anchor mooring spread to enable ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’ to perform offshore installations where shallow water depths do not allow the use of the vessel’s DP2 system.
• Installation of a modular Grout (cement) mixing and pumping station in the aft section of the cargo hold.
• Provision of a Grout Bags storage area including the installation of a wall barrier for safe escape passage and a forklift barrier to ensure safe operations.
• Installation and commissioning of a modular, motion compensated Telescopic Access Bridge (TAB), enabling access from ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’ to the TPs during the installation.

Teamwork
Managing the project on behalf of Solis Marine in Singapore was Captain Sjoerd Blomsma who said:

“Solis Marine was pleased to be appointed by Jumbo Offshore to assist with the mobilisation of ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’ in Singapore for her upcoming project.

“Through close co-operation and teamwork, this has been successfully achieved despite a difficult period of lockdown.” Ad van Langeraad, Jumbo’s Technical Department Manager, agrees wholeheartedly: “Solis was a great help in keeping a high degree of efficiency and finding solutions.”

Blomsma continues: “We explored and applied alternative solutions where required, meaning that time lost on the project due to Covid-19 factors has been kept to a minimum. We wish Jumbo Offshore, the master and crew of ‘JUMBO JAVELIN’, who contributed significantly towards this successful mobilisation, a safe and successful project ahead.”

Captain Sjoerd Blomsma