Terra Marique Deployed To Deliver 121-Tonne Units
UK-based specialist shipping firm Robert Wynn and Sons has deployed its heavy-lift roll-on, roll-off barge Terra Marique to ship three, 121-tonne transformers from the Port of Rotterdam to Combwich Wharf in southwest England.
The units were destined for the nearby Shurton substation, set to connect the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant, one of Europe’s largest civil engineering projects led by French utility EDF, to the UK’s electrical grid.
The 80-metre-long Terra Marique collected the transformers from the Mammoet Heavy Lift Terminal at the Port of Rotterdam, then carried them through the English and Bristol Channels and along the River Parrett to Combwich Wharf.
The Terra Marique, a flat-bottomed barge designed to operate on NAABSA berths, was the first vessel to use EDF’s purpose-built wharf following the completion of a multi-million-pound overhaul to support the construction of Hinkley Point C.
From there, the transformers, manufactured by Siemens Energy, were offloaded by Mammoet using multi-axle trailers and delivered to the Shurton facility.
“While the Terra Marique is purpose built for such operations, there are a number of factors unique to this operation that has meant that detailed planning and collective working was required to successfully carry out such a complex operation,” said Andy Manners, general manager at Robert Wynn and Sons.
“The project was coordinated by Züst and Bachmeier Project GmbH who along with our engineers, crew and those from Mammoet, the Port of Bridgwater and EDF all worked together to ensure this project was delivered as planned.”
The Port of Rotterdam will be hosting Breakbulk Europe 2022 on 17-19 May.
PHOTO: Terra Marique at Combwich Wharf. CREDIT: Robert Wynn & Sons (Image cannot be reproduced without permission)
