With offshore wind turbines becoming taller and taller, the Rotterdam-based start-up Tetrahedron has developed a crane that makes existing jack-up rigs suited for installing this next generation of offshore wind turbines.
To help the firm further develop its innovation, UNIIQ has awarded Tetrahedron an investment from its proof-of-concept fund.
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As offshore wind power is expected to grow, a strong demand for wind power is expected as well. To address this surge, the new wind turbines installed out at sea are increasing in size. In the near future, the current self-elevating turbine installation vessels, or jack-up rigs, will no longer be able to raise themselves high enough to reach the uppermost parts of these structures.
For this reason, Tetrahedron is developing a crane that makes existing jack-up rigs suited for installing the coming generations of 10-20MW wind turbines out on the water.
The owners of today’s jack-up rigs are working hard to find new solutions to upgrade their vessels so they can lift higher. However, the current upgrade options come with certain limitations. They make the cranes heavier, while when a jack-up is moving to the work site, the crane needs to be lowered to a horizontal position. This poses a challenge for the existing upgrade options.
Tetrahedron’s design upgrades the existing crane in terms of lift height without sacrificing lift capacity. Moreover, the crane is not longer than before when horizontal, meaning that it still fits on the jack-up rig while the vessel is underway.
Tetrahedron will be using the UNIIQ investment to further develop the crane and take the steps required for certification.