Drifting bulk carrier damages foundation at Hollandse Kust Zuid wind farm

What happened

On 31 January 2022 the bulk carrier Julietta D became adrift in an anchorage area north of the Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind farm in the Netherlands after a hull breach in a collision with another vessel. The engine room took on water and the 18-person crew was evacuated by helicopter. The vessel then drifted rudderless through the construction site for several hours. Vattenfall, the wind farm's majority owner and developer, said an initial aerial inspection indicated damage to one of 34 monopile foundations already installed, and that the vessel also collided with the jacket of a TenneT transformer platform.

Further inspections were still required to determine the extent of the damage. The vessel was later towed to Rotterdam. Vattenfall said it had no personnel or vessels in the area at the time. A number of people on a tug and a rescue boat involved in the operation suffered minor injuries.

Contributing factors

The vessel became adrift after a hull breach in a collision with another vessel and took on water in the engine room, then drifted rudderless through the site. The cause of that earlier collision is not reported in this source.

Lessons learned

1. A drifting vessel in an offshore wind construction site can strike monopile foundations, so operators should review vessel traffic controls and anchoring near active sites.
2. A bulk carrier with engine room flooding requires rapid towing plans to limit time inside a wind farm, as aerial inspection alone cannot confirm full damage.

More lessons on structural integrity and turbines, weather and external hazards, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

• Cause of the earlier collision
• Extent of foundation and jacket damage
• Downtime and repair cost

This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.

Source

offshoreWIND.biz (offshorewind.biz)