French family-owned shipowner Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LDA) has secured a contract from the Swedish Group Vattenfall to build, own, and operate up to three service operation vessels (SOVs) under long-term contracts.
Louis Dreyfus Armateurs has emerged as the winner of a tender process that took place throughout 2024 and has been concluded late December.
The 90-meter SOVs will be deployed to support offshore wind farm operations and maintenance in the North Sea.
The terms of the long-term contracts with Vattenfall include two firm SOVs and one optional SOV.
A ceremony for the official signature was held in Denmark on Wednesday, January 8. The first SOV will enter service in mid-2027 on the DanTysk and Sandbank offshore wind farms, each with a 288 MW capacity.
The second SOV will start operations before the end of 2027, servicing the Nordlicht 1 and 2 wind farms, with a capacity of 980 MW and 630 MW, respectively.
The third, optional SOV is intended for future projects in the North Sea.
The vessels will be built, owned, and operated by French Group Louis Dreyfus Armateurs and will be registered under the French flag.
The vessels feature double-ended hull form with two propellers at both ends, fast-responding azimuth thrusters and an adjustable-height stern boat landing to optimize technician safe transfers between turbines, a 3D crane to perform cargo transfers, client offices and meeting rooms, a walk-to-work gangway, and hotel-standard accommodations.
“We are proud to establish this new partnership with Vattenfall, recognizing our expertise in designing and operating purpose-built SOVs,” noted Edouard Louis-Dreyfus, president of LDA.
