Siemens Energy has contracted EST-Floattech to supply the battery system for a ‘CSOV Plus’, a new Commissioning Service Operation Vessel for Marco Polo Marine that it is building at its own shipyard in Batam, Indonesia. Siemens Energy acts as system integrator for the vessel’s hybrid power plant. EST-Floattech will deliver a package of Octopus HE modules with a capacity of more than 1 MWh, supporting the vessel’s hybrid and dynamic positioning (DP) operations. This is EST-Floattech’s first project in Singapore and Taiwan.
Designed for two sectors
The CSOV Plus, designed by Salt Ship Design (Norway), is the first CSOV developed from the outset for operations in both offshore wind and oil & gas. It combines a 100-tonne active heave compensated crane and a motion-compensated gangway for walk-to-work transfers in significant wave heights of up to 3.0 metres with a hull and propulsion configuration optimised for station-keeping. Construction started in Batam in the second quarter of 2026; delivery is scheduled for the second quarter of 2028.
Battery support for hybrid and DP operations
On board, the Octopus High Energy system works alongside the vessel’s generator sets and Siemens Energy’s BlueDrive PlusC. During DP operations the batteries provide spinning reserve and absorb load variations, so fewer generators need to run and those that do run operate closer to their optimum load.
Prepared for full-electric sailing
Sustainability was a design requirement from the start. The CSOV Plus has been laid out so that its battery capacity can later be extended to a 20 MWh package, allowing the vessel to sail fully electric. The modular architecture of the Octopus Series makes that upgrade possible on the same platform: additional modules are added to the existing battery management system, in the space reserved in the design.
According to EST-Floattech, it was their proven track record in maritime electrification (with systems operating at sea for more than ten years), and the fact the Octopus High Energy system fits the operational profile of the CSOV Plus, that convinced Siemens Energy. The package delivers what the vessel needs for DP and hybrid operations today, and can grow with the vessel later, proving the company’s ability to integrate a power system that can perform for the full life of a charter.At work in Taiwanese offshore wind
Once delivered, the CSOV Plus will be operated by PKR Offshore (PKRO), Marco Polo Marine’s Taiwan-based subsidiary, which supports the offshore wind market in Taiwan with a fleet of offshore vessels. PKRO will deploy the vessel for Siemens Gamesa under a multi-year framework agreement covering offshore wind projects in Taiwanese waters. PKR Offshore’s first CSOV, MP Wind Archer, is already in service in Taiwan since 2025.
Walter van der Pennen, Chief Commercial Officer, EST-Floattech states: “We are grateful for the trust that Siemens Energy and Marco Polo Marine have placed in us. Furthermore, we thank our partner Durapower for their role in bringing about our first project together in Singapore. Offshore wind support vessels in Asia-Pacific have demanding operating profiles: long periods on DP, constant load changes and multi-year charters. A battery system that supports those operations reliably, and that can be extended when the operator is ready to go fully electric, is exactly what the Octopus Series was designed for. We look forward to seeing the CSOV Plus at work in Taiwanese waters.”
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