Bokalift 1 in the Waalhaven

On this picture you see the 216 meters long and 43 meters wide Bokalift 1 of Boskalis approaching the Rhenus Waalhaven Terminal in Rotterdam. The vessel is assisted by the Kotug-Smit Union7 (also Boskalis) passing the Fugro Meridian, a multipurpose survey vessel, and the newly named heavylift vessel Hudsongracht, formerly known as the HHL Elbe.

In 2017 Boskalis converted their semi-submersible heavy lift vessel Finesse into a self-propelled crane vessel. The Bokalift 1 can accommodate 150 persons and has an available deck space of abt. 7000sqm (165m x 43m) with a 3,000 ton revolving Huisman crane. The vessel is used to install jackets and monopiles for offshore wind turbines and for the decommissioning of obsolete oil and gas platforms.

By placing the crane in the middle of the deck it is possible to lift bigger and longer objects. The heavy lift vessel is equipped with a dynamic positioning 2 system (DP2), which ensures that the ship stays stably on his place at all times. Also, the ship doesn’t have to anchor itself whilst using the DP2 system.

The first project the Bokalift worked on was the construction of the East Anglia ONE OWF in the UK. This is the first of four wind farm projects in the region of East Anglia. This 714 megawatt wind farm consists of 102 x 7 megawatt Siemens wind turbines. More information about this project can be found here.