Zaratan Passes SMC Inspection Ahead of Taiwan Trip

SMC has completed a full inspection of Seajacks’ self-propelled jack-up vessel, Zaratan, ahead of its deployment to Taiwan in the coming weeks.

Seajacks Zaratan will be utilised as an installation vessel in the coming months for construction of the 120MW Formosa 1 Phase 2 offshore wind farm. The installation works are scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2019.

Zaratan has now been inspected by SMC on three separate occasions, in addition to hosting SMC’s offshore construction personnel during the development of the world’s furthest offshore wind farm, the Veja Mate wind farm.

SMC Managing Director, Capt. Ian Coates, who completed this latest inspection, said: “The Zaratan is a vessel with which we are extremely familiar, and it is a pleasure to continue to work with our long-standing client, Seajacks. We will be keeping a close eye on the vessel’s activities in Taiwan as we anticipate further successes for her in the region in the coming years.”

The Formosa 1 Phase 2 wind farm will comprise 20 Siemens Gamesa 6MW wind turbines installed on monopile foundations around six kilometers off the west coast of the Miaoli district, with water depths ranging between 15 and 30 metres.

Once fully built in the second half of 2019 and fully operational in 2020, the Formosa 1 will have the capacity of 128MW.

The Formosa 1 Phase 1 comprises two 4MW Siemens Gamesa wind turbines, which have been in operation since May 2017, and is Taiwan’s first operating wind farm.