Windcat and Eneco are pleased to announce that a 5 year charter and partnership have been agreed. This long-term charter will allow the safe transport of technicians offshore and will also allow the companies to work together on decarbonisation of Eneco’s marine logistics using Windcat’s hydrogen dual fuel solutions. The first vessel for this charter has been operational since the first of January, 2023.

Windcat and Eneco share many core values and future goals. This new collaboration between Windcat and Eneco is therefore a logical next step. The high performance Windcat 32 vessel used for this charter is a highly fuel-efficient vessel with high safety standards. Going forward, the use of hydrogen will be further explored for further reduction of emissions from crew transfer vessels. Both Windcat and Eneco prioritise emission reduction.

Managing Director, Willem van der Wel: “With the Hydrocat 48, we invested heavily in emission reduction by using a dual fuel hydrogen engine, one of the reasons Eneco wanted to partner with us. Windcat looks forward to this collaboration that will ensure the decarbonisation of Eneco’s logistics. We will continue to work on developing the customised service that meets Eneco’s needs.”

Windcat 32, the vessel used for this charter, is fuel-efficient and will be used for the safe transport of technicians offshore. The vessel will be customised to Eneco’s needs, amongst others by the installation of an IMO Tier III engine. This engine uses a SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) system which radically reduces NOx emissions. The vessel will operate from IJmuiden and provide access to Eneco’s offshore wind farms: Prinses Amalia Windpark, Luchterduinen and Hollandse Kust Noord.

Lead Asset Manager Offshore Wind, Renzo Schildmeijer: “We are pleased to further deepen and strengthen our relationship with Windcat with this new contract. Both companies share many core values and future goals. Windcat will be an important partner in decarbonizing our offshore logistics and delivering on our ambition becoming climate neutral in 2035.”

Guaranteed uptime

Windcat offers in-house developed vessels with a full support service. The engineering support teams are experienced and prepared so that a quick response is guaranteed. Windcat has a large pool of critical spare parts stored in strategic locations, including its largest warehouse in IJmuiden, giving them full control over spare parts themselves. These support systems are therefore a unique service and are located in multiple sites around Europe. Windcat also just obtained a DNV management system certificate which demonstrates Windcat’s effective management system processes, commitment to continual improvement and development towards more sustainable business functions.

Future partnership

The partnership allows for additional vessels to be used, to further support the existing projects and also new offshore wind farm projects that Eneco will be part of.