3,000 shore power connections per year with flexible energy supply systems

Profile

• What was needed: Ready-to-install flexible system for supplying offshore supply vessels (OSV) with shore power
• Requirements: Robust, low-maintenance system that can withstand the harsh environmental conditions of an offshore base
• Product: readychain harnessed energy chain, realised as an e-spool with twisterchain technology
• Industry: Shore power supply
• Success for the customer: Reliable service with over 3,000 shore power connections per year

Shore power supply: Ships are to be supplied with shore power in the harbour in order to be able to switch off the diesel auxiliary generators on board and thus protect the environment. To do this, the ships must be connected to a cable supply system via a standardised plug connection.

The Mongstad offshore base is one of the busiest bases in Norway.
Ships change twice a day to be loaded with equipment for the offshore platforms in the North Sea. The base operates around the clock.
Therefore, they need a very reliable and robust system that works in harsh environments and does not require much maintenance. The other important issue is flexibility. The ship berths in different positions due to wind conditions, sometimes to starboard, sometimes to port, to turn the bow into the wind and provide wind protection for the crew during unloading and loading.

A reliable, robust and flexible shore power supply system from igus is being used at the busy Mongstad offshore base in Norway.
A pre-assembled e-spool is integrated into a 10-foot container that can be handled by the forklift trucks to position the system along the various berths.
In addition, the container protects the system from the harsh environment and the effects of harbour operations. The readychain system is a slip-ring free solution and all cables are hard-wired, which in turn reduces maintenance requirements.