DEME Offshore’s latest heavy lift jack-up vessel Apollo has completed a one-month conversion project at Damen Shiprepair Dunkerque (DSDu).
A moonpool was installed on the main deck, which involved creating an opening through the centre of the vessel from the main deck down via the engine stores and through the hull.
The work was done in a strict sequence based on strength calculations of the ship’s structure, in order to not compromise the structural integrity of the 87.5 m-long vessel.
Before the works could begin, the vessel was manoeuvred alongside the quay and then jacked up. This allowed the work to be conducted from a pontoon positioned directly beneath the hull, said Damen.
Fabien Guillemot, commercial manager at DSDu, said: “For our customers this demonstrates that for vessels of this type we do not always need to incur the added cost and time of drydocking for projects or mobilisations that require works below the waterline.
“The location of our shipyard in the east port of Dunkerque has a constant water level thanks to the locks that separate us from the open sea. That greatly simplifies operations like this.”
Apollo is now in Scotland for a wind farm installation project.
