UK firm to power Jan De Nul’s new subsea trencher

MJR Power and Automation has secured a contract with offshore equipment supplier Osbit to assist with the design and construction of a 1200 kW offshore power van for the Swordfish subsea trenching vehicle.

The Swordfish will be powered by two 300 kW hydraulic power units and two 300 kW electric HP jet pumps and will be capable of tackling a variety of soil conditions.

According to Osbit, the vehicle can be fitted with a jetting or mechanical chain cutter system, or a combination of both, to tackle a wide variety of soil conditions and bury cables up to three meters deep.

The Swordfish Power Cabin is said to be central to the control and distribution of power for the trencher equipment spread and will boast a suite of low harmonic variable speed drives with a fully integrated control system.

“We are proud to be drawing on our internal expertise and local supply chain to deliver yet another bespoke, market-leading subsea vehicle,” said Abbas Latif, project wwner at Osbit.

“Smart power distribution is at the heart of the vehicle’s effectiveness and enables the vehicle to maximise the utilisation of available power in all likely operational scenarios.”

To remind, Jan De Nul signed an agreement with Osbit for the design and construction of Swordfish in April.

Delivery is scheduled for the first quarter of 2022, when the vehicle will join Jan De Nul’s fleet of three other trenching vehicles.