When operational, the 3.6GW Dogger Bank wind farm will be enough to power 4.5 million British households with clean energy annually
Deme Offshore to use cable laying vessel Living Stone for the project. (Credit: DEME.)
Deme Offshore has secured a contract for the installation of inter-array cables at the 3.6GW Dogger Bank offshore wind farm to be located off the coast of the UK.
The scope of contract won by Deme Offshore includes the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of the subsea cables for a combined capacity of 2.4GW portion of the wind farm.
For the contract, Deme will supply, install and protect 650km of 66kV inter-array cables and all of its related accessories.
The inter-array cables for Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B will be produced in 2021 and will be installed using Deme’s DP3 cable installation vessel ‘Living Stone’. The vessel was selected basedon its huge cable capacity of more than 10,000 tonnes.
The vessel is claimed to have a double-lane system, which includes two cable highways, one for laying the cable and the other can be used for preparation.
Bart De Poorter, General Manager DEME Offshore, comments: “We are very proud to have been awarded this exceptional project, which represents the largest ever inter-array cable contract in the world to date. The renowned cable-laying capabilities and stellar reputation of ‘Living Stone’ were key factors in securing this important contract.”
Dogger Bank wind farm will be built in three 1.2GW phases
Considered to be the world’s largest offshore wind farm, the project will be located 130km off the North East coast of England and includes three 1.2GW phases.
When operational, the project will generate enough clean energy to power more than 4.5 million UK households every with clean energy, equivalent to 5% of the country’s electricity needs.
SSE Renewables Dogger Bank Wind Farm project director Steve Wilson said: “We are delighted to welcome DEME Offshore to the Dogger Bank project to undertake the manufacturing and installation of the 66 kV inter-array cables for Dogger Bank phases A and B in what is the largest ever inter-array cable order of its type.
“DEME, using its state of the art ‘Living Stone’ vessel, has a proven track record in delivering large inter-array cable scopes, and this experience and capability will be essential to successfully install the 650 km of cable required for Dogger Bank A and B.”
Deme’s contract with the joint venture of SSE Renewables and Equinor is subject to reaching financial close on the wind farm, which could take place later this year.