The CMHI Haimen shipyard in China laid the keel for Les Alizés, Jan De Nul’s new heavy lift crane vessel, on 29 April. The ship will be ready in 2022 and is equipped with a crane having a lifting capacity of 5000 tonnes and equally impressive lifting heights.

Les Alizés is specifically designed for loading, transporting, lifting and installing offshore wind turbine foundations. The main features are a main crane of 5000 tonnes to be built by Huisman, a deck loading capacity of 61,000 tonnes and a deck space of 9300 m2. With these characteristics, the vessel can easily transport the heavier future foundations, several in one trip, to the offshore installation site, with direct benefits in planning, fuel consumption and emissions reduction.

Unlike Jan De Nul’s other offshore installation vessel under construction, the Voltaire, Les Alizés does not have four legs to lift itself above the sea surface. It is a crane vessel for floating installation, which means that the vessel is not dependent on the water depths and the seabed conditions. Les Alizés is equipped with a high-performance DP2 system.

Cleanship notation

Les Alizés will be equipped with several green measures and innovations to minimise its environmental impact, such as a highly advanced dual exhaust filter system that removes up to 99 per cent of nanoparticles from emissions using a diesel particulate filter (DPF) followed by selective catalytic reduction system (SCR). In addition, an onboard Energy Storage System will optimise engine operation and reduce fuel consumption and emissions.

The vessel will also have a Cleanship NDO7 and a Green Passport EU label. The Cleanship label confirms that the vessel checks and minimises the waste water and all other residual waste. The Green Passport label means that all materials and hazardous substances are mapped out during the construction phase, in order to facilitate the recycling of the vessel when decommissioned. Both certificates are issued by a specialized external agency.