Recently, the world’s largest XL class cable laying vessel (CLV) “Fleeming Jenkin” was successfully launched at China Merchants Heavy Industries Haimen shipyard (CMHI Haimen shipyard), marking the vessel’s official entry into the final stage of construction before delivery.
The “Fleeming Jenkin” is Jan De Nul Group’s first XL-class cable-laying vessel. It and its sister vessel, the “William Thomson”, both set industry records with a length of 215 meters and a cable-carrying capacity of 28,000 tons, making them the world’s largest cable-laying vessels. The vessel is equipped with three cable carousels (two on deck and one below deck) and a large fiber optic cable hull. Its total cable carrying capacity of 28,000 tons is twice that of other cable-laying vessels currently on the market.
The vessel is environmentally friendly, capable of running on biofuels and green methanol, and is an ultra-low emission vessel with a hybrid power unit that combines a generator with a 2.5MWh energy storage system, which helps to reduce CO2 emissions.
The vessel is scheduled to enter into service in the second half of 2026. Once operational, it will lay the outgoing cables for TenneT’s four 2GW offshore wind converter platforms, with a total length of more than 2,800 kilometers.