Sif solves transport and harbour problem in Asia
Offshore wind energy is becoming increasingly popular in Japan. However, Japanese and other Asian harbours are currently not equipped to deal with the large number of offshore wind foundations. There are just a handful of harbours that can carry the weights of offshore foundations heavier than 1,000 tonnes without requiring significant adjustments and investments.
Sif and East Winds Asia have come up with a solution to initiate the first big steps into the offshore wind industry in Japan and Asia.
Effective transportation and storing of offshore wind foundations
Sif and their Japanese partner East Winds Asia (EWA), have developed a method for the effective transportation and storage of offshore wind foundations. Even without infrastructural adjustments to the harbours, the offshore wind industry in Japan and the rest of Asia is still able to develop quickly.
Sif and East Winds Asia developed a method in which the foundations
are transported on a semi-submersible ship. When the ship arrives in
Japan, the cargo is unloaded, and the foundations are brought into the
harbour on barges.
The foundations can be picked up directly from the installation vessel with a crane without being stored in the harbour first.
Compared to the conventional method of unloading and storage in the harbour, this method can ‘lead to more than a 50% reduction in transport and storage costs, as port reinforcements and heavy lifting equipment are no longer needed,’ explains Justus Schoemaker, the director of East Winds Asia.
This inventive solution marks a giant step for the development of the offshore energy market in Japan and the rest of Asia.
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