Substations ready for installation in German North Sea
Published by Jessica Casey,
Editor
Energy Global,
A ceremony held at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, has marked the completion of the design, construction, and integration phases of two offshore electrical substations. These substations will become the operational heart of Phase A of the Nordseecluster offshore wind project, a collaboration between RWE (51%) and Norges Bank Investment Management (49%), which is currently under construction off the German coast.
Each topside is approximately 40 m long and 22 m high. The first topside weighs about 1800 t, while the second comes in at around 2500 t. Both large scale structures will depart from Saint-Nazaire by the end February. The units will be transported by barge to their installation site in the North Sea, around 50 km north of the German island of Juist, on a voyage lasting around eight days. The foundations for the two substations have already been installed.
Tobias Keitel, Chief Technology Officer at RWE Offshore Wind, said: “It is impressive to see these two large topsides ready for installation in the German North Sea. With the foundations already in place, everything is prepared for the upcoming ‘wedding at sea’ – the moment when the topsides are successfully installed on the foundations. My sincere thanks go to Chantiers de l’Atlantique for their outstanding craftsmanship, as well as to our valued partner Norges Bank Investment Management, the entire RWE team, and everyone involved in bringing the Nordseecluster to life. With this 1.6 GW cluster, RWE is significantly expanding its offshore wind portfolio and helping to deliver a reliable, clean, and affordable energy system.”
Frédéric Grizaud, Senior Vice President Marine Renewable Energies business unit at Chantiers de l’Atlantique, added: “We would like to thank RWE for their confidence in us. Delivering two offshore substations simultaneously is a major achievement for our teams and reflects both their commitment and technical expertise. This project demonstrates the international competitiveness of the French offshore wind industry, confirms our position as a leading player in a rapidly expanding sector, and highlights our contribution to European energy sovereignty.”
The Nordseecluster substations will collect electricity generated by the turbines, increase the voltage and transmit the power to the converter station of the grid operator. From this converter station the electricity flows to shore. The Nordseecluster substations are also equipped to gather operational data from the wind farms and to enable remote monitoring and control from land.
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Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/wind/11022026/substations-ready-for-installation-in-german-north-sea/
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