The team deliberately chose a USV for safety, sustainability and efficiency. With no crew on board, injury and accidents due to fatigue are eliminated, and there are fewer moving parts and less equipment to install and use. Operating without crew means the vessel can stay offshore for longer, resulting in better data and reduced fuel use. This in turn means a significantly lower carbon footprint and less impact on the marine ecosystem.
Trials to date have proved effectiveand the USV will go on to surveywithin the696 km2Hornsea 3 area for the installation of the turbines and the offshore cable route. The data will then be used to create a detailed overviewto use when installing Hornsea 3’s foundations. The USV will also house radio equipment to expand communications capacity and willdouble up as a wave buoy to contribute to the wider weather picture across the wind farm.
Jason Ledden, Senior Project Director, Hornsea 3 at Ørstedsaid: “We’ll be using thisnew technologyon Hornsea 3 for almost two years, greatly improving the safety of our team who canoperate the USVfrom onshore control rooms instead of venturing offshore. It will also save time and fuel and improve the information we collect – helping us build the world’s single largest offshore wind farm in the safest, most efficient and sustainable way possible.”
This USV used on HOW3 is developed and built by Ørsted and part of Ørsted’sown fleet of USVs.