Boskalis Christens Largest Subsea Rock Installation Ship ‘Windpiper’

Boskalis has christened the Windpiper after completing an 18-month-long conversion program, which transformed the ship into what the company claims is now the largest subsea rock installation vessel in the world.

Ms Jones-Bos, a member of the Boskalis Supervisory Board, served as the vessel’s sponsor in the event held last Friday.

The ship is 227 m long, 40 m wide and can carry up to 45,500 metric tons of rock in two of its cargo holds, enabling it to undertake projects which require long transits between loading facilities and offshore construction sites while decreasing the number of trips.

The conversion program was announced in 2025, which involved transforming a newbuild rather than constructing a specialised offshore vessel from scratch.

The Windpiper has 7 thrusters, a moonpool for fall-pipe rock installation, and an inclined fall pipe to place protective rock around offshore infrastructure, including foundations of offshore wind turbines.

The ship also has over 100 cabins for crew and client representatives.

The ceremony for the vessel, said to double Boskalis’ rock installation capacity, was followed by an open-ship celebration attended by over 3000 employees and their family members on board the ship.

According to Boskalis, the Windpiper would take up its first offshore wind infrastructure project in Northwestern Europe.

The ship’s massive capacity also makes it ideal to undertake assignments far afield, such as along the U.S East Coast, the Baltic Sea and the southern North Sea, where long sailing distances make few loading trips economically and environmentally beneficial.

Lastly, the company previously operated three SRI ships, but now with the launch and christening of the Windpiper, it claims to have become the largest player in the sector.