The Jones Act, also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, is an American federal law that regulates maritime commerce in the United States. It requires that goods transported by water between U.S. ports must be carried on ships that are built, owned, and operated by U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
While the Jones Act has been around for decades, the act has resurfaced for much discussion in recent years. As the U.S. invests in new offshore wind projects, the need for specialized vessels (particularly jack-up vessels) to install and maintain wind turbines has grown significantly. However, most of the jack-up vessels capable of performing these tasks are foreign-built and foreign-operated, which conflicts with the Jones Act's requirements. As such, the Jones Act is a contributing factor to the higher costs for offshore wind installation and servicing work in the U.S.
While some companies are looking to produce new state-of-the-art jack-up vessels in the U.S. to comply with the Jones Act, the cost of local U.S. production is still much greater than global sourcing. At SOLVE WIND, we’re proud to offer an alternative solution with our ATOMS platform.
Smaller and simpler than a state-of-the-art jack-up vessel, our ATOMS platform is well suited for local U.S. production. Not only will a locally produced ATOMS platform require a smaller capital investment, it can also contribute to much sought-after local content initiatives that qualify for additional funding. Once paired with the proven Liftra Self-Hoisting Crane, our combined solution enables cost competitive, on-site, Jones Act compliant major component replacements.
To learn more about our innovative technology, please don’t hesitate to reach us at info@solvewind.com.