Seacat Rainbow secures first long-term charter with Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm Ltd
Class-leading offshore energy support vessel (OESV) operator Seacat Services (Seacat) has announced that newly launched catamaran Seacat Rainbow has gone straight on to a long-term charter with Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Ltd (BOWL).
Seacat Rainbow will support Operations & Maintenance activity for the service team working at BOWL, joining her sister vessel Seacat Weatherly, which is currently on charter with the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
Seacat Rainbow and Seacat Weatherly are the first Chartwell 24 catamarans to enter operational service and are the product of long-term supply chain collaboration seeking to refine the formula for offshore wind vessel support. The contract for Seacat Rainbow is the latest example of success borne from Seacat’s commitment to develop its fleet based on the rapidly evolving needs of the market.
As offshore wind projects move further out to sea, more testing conditions have led to site operators, OEMs and contractors favouring vessels which can provide greater safety and passenger comfort. With its advanced engine and hull design, Seacat Rainbow was an ideal choice for BOWL’s needs, offering step free access, enhanced safety features and greater stability - without compromising on technical availability or fuel efficiency.
The greater reliability provided by these attributes is of particular value at project Beatrice - which is located 13km off the Caithness coast in the deep waters Northeast of Scotland - enabling Seacat Rainbow to capitalise on available weather windows amid high winds and large swells.
During a period of challenging working conditions for the industry, Seacat Rainbow’s size and enlarged foredeck also provides the space needed to allow for greater numbers of passengers and crew to socially distance in-line with COVID guidance, enabling operational efficiency to be upheld whilst maintaining rigorous health and safety standards. The versatility of Seacat’s fleet has helped the operator to meet close to maximum occupancy rates during 2020, and the addition of Seacat Rainbow and other upcoming newbuilds will help ensure that this success is repeated in 2021.
Martin Sutherland, Operations Manager, Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Ltd, said: “Having worked with Seacat Services extensively we are well aware of the high standards of service the team brings, and their ability to respond to demanding work scopes in challenging conditions. We’re excited to bring one of the first of the ‘next-generation’ Chartwell 24 vessels onto the project, having seen first-hand the performance of Rainbow’s sister vessel Weatherly at the site.”
Ian Baylis, Managing Director at Seacat, said: “Demand for high-performance, high-efficiency offshore energy support vessels is rising across the sector, and Seacat Rainbow’s immediate charter highlights the strength of our commitment to vessel innovation and cross-industry collaboration. Seacat Rainbow is designed to capitalise on the core attributes that Seacat is built on, including best-in-class safety, availability and ultimately ‘time-on-turbine’ for technicians, enabling her to go above and beyond our customers’ expectations.”
