No green hydrogen available for Siemens Gamesa’s zero emissions-ready ship

Siemens Gamesa has commissioned the new hydrogen-ready Service Operation Vessel (SOV) – the REM Energy.

The latest member of Siemens Gamesa’s fleet of ships is ready for the addition of a 12-MW battery which would reduce energy consumption during operation, Siemens Gamesa said.

The REM Energy is also capable to run emissions-free on green hydrogen or with batteries and offshore charging.

However, until a green hydrogen economy is established in Germany, the ship will be conventionally powered by diesel generators.

The REM Energy is almost 90 metres long and almost 20 metres wide. It will be the workplace and living quarters for up to 75 offshore service technicians and 24 crew members.

”The REM Energy is setting new standards in terms of occupational safety, sustainability and efficiency,” said Stephan Hauhs, Managing Director of Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy Deutschland GmbH in Bremerhaven.

”With the new SOV, we will be able to optimize the service we are providing for our customers. We will increase the availability of the offshore turbines, thereby reducing the cost of electricity and ensuring more clean energy while increasing the safety for our offshore service technicians.”

The ship was delivered from the Norwegian shipyard Green Yard Kleven on 3 December, and was christened there in mid-November.

Siemens Gamesa has chartered the REM Energy for four years. The SOV will be operated by the shipping company REM ENERGY AS. The home port for the service operations will be Bremerhaven. The REM Energy will be deployed on the Global Tech 1 and Trianel Borkum West wind farms.

”We are taking the first step in getting ready to cut our emissions in offshore service operations. The commissioning of the REM Energy is a strong signal highlighting the availability of clean technology to facilitate operation without emissions,” said Jonas Pagh Jensen, Sustainability Specialist at Siemens Gamesa.

”Governments, industry and investors now need to partner up quickly to ramp up a green hydrogen infrastructure to facilitate the decarbonization of marine shipping.”

Thanks to its azimuth thrusters which can be rotated 360 degrees around the vertical axis, the ship is extremely maneuverable, enabling it to safely move between the wind turbines even in rough seas, Siemens Gamesa said.

The ship has a gangway that stabilizes the wave movements and enables the technicians to safely transfer from the ship to the offshore wind turbine.

The offshore service technicians will live on board and work in shifts. The Siemens Gamesa crew will rotate every 14 days, while the REM Energy itself is able to operate at sea for a total of more than a month before having to return to port again.