Jan De Nul Orders Second Subsea Trenching Vessel
September 21, 2026
Jan De Nul has ordered a second trenching support vessel designed to bury subsea energy cables as it expands its fleet for cable installation and protection.
The new vessel will be an exact sister ship to the Isambard K. Brunel, which Jan De Nul ordered in March, and will carry a subsea trencher capable of burying cables as deep as five metres into the seabed.
The latest order takes the number of new vessels Jan De Nul has under construction for subsea cable installation and protection to five, comprising two XL cable-laying vessels, an XL rock installation vessel and two trenching support vessels.
The two cable-laying vessels are the Fleeming Jenkin, which has completed its first sea trials and entered the final construction phase, and the William Thomson. The George W. Goethals rock installation vessel will be used to protect cables and other energy infrastructure with layers of rock.
“With the Isambard K. Brunel and this new sister vessel, we are also adding two vessels for burying cables in the seabed. This will bring our fleet to a total of fourteen vessels for the installation and protection of subsea cables,” said Wouter Vermeersch, Director Subsea Cables Offshore Energy at Jan De Nul.
The latest trenching vessel will feature Jan De Nul's Ultra-Low Emission vessel technology, which the company said can filter up to 99% of nanoparticles from exhaust gases. Its engines will be able to operate on biofuel and will be prepared for future methanol use.
Jan De Nul is separately converting the Henry Darcy from a water injection dredger into a compact trenching support vessel. It will carry the Crayfish subsea robot for cable burial in shallow water.
