Nexans, a U.S. manufacturer of subsea transmission cable, announced a partnership with Crowley Wind Services to develop and operate a Jones Act compliant cable lay barge.
The 300-foot, U.S.-flagged barge will be crewed by American mariners under Crowley’s operation. The vessel will play a critical role in laying and burying the subsea cables needed to deliver energy from offshore to the grid onshore. The barge is the first to have vertical injectors along with a dynamic positioning system and a multiple-anchors positioning system, which allow for accurate and efficient cable placement, even in challenging conditions.
The barge boasts a 3,500-ton capacity carousel to lay and bury subsea cable using burial tools such as a vertical injector, a jet sled, or a jetting ROV, with the potential to be upgraded to 7,000 tons with two carousels for bundle cable lay and burial. The barge is positioned to support Equinor’s Empire Wind offshore wind farm for New York and can be configured to lay or repair cable for a multitude of other subsea applications.
“The cable lay barge will provide a productive supply chain solution for offshore energy, telecommunications and other sectors,” said Graham Tyson, Crowley Wind Services vice president of operations. “Coupled with our fleet and mariners providing feedering services and other logistics and project management, we could not be better equipped to serve the needs of industries seeking subsea cable solutions.”
