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DEME held a formal naming ceremony for its new fallpipe vessel in Zeebrugge, Belgium, on Tuesday, June 4.
Yellowstone boasts a payload capacity of 37,000 tonnes, making it one of the largest fallpipe vessels in operation today. The vessel will sail for the United States this summer to work on the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project.
The vessel was originally completed as a bulk carrier. Conversion works were undertaken at PaxOcean's shipyard facilities in Singapore.
Yellowstone is designed to ensure versatility and efficiency in subsea rock placement projects. It features a central vertical fallpipe that is capable of operating in water depths of 600 to 700 metres, along with a large inclined fallpipe that has been designed for shallower depths of 30 to 50 metres.
The fallpipe configuration will enable precise rock placement activities near subsea structures, such as offshore wind turbine monopiles.
DEME said the loading capacity makes the vessel well-suited for projects that also entail longer distances or transit times.
The vessel has a hybrid propulsion setup that also includes a lithium-ion battery. The propulsion system can be configured in the future to enable operation on green methanol.
