Turbine in at Arcadis Ost 1 wind farm using 'world's first floating installation' method
Contractor Hereema Marine installs first out of 27 Vestas 9.5MW bottom-fixed machine without seabed interaction by the installation vessel
Hereema Marine Contractors has installed the first out of 27 Vestas V174-9.5MW turbines at the 257MW Arcadis Ost 1 wind project in the German Baltic Sea for the Parkwind consortium.
The method also has a shorter installation cycle.
“This first installation is the result of extensive engineering, innovation, and the dedication of our team, alongside Parkwind and Vestas, who together have worked hard to deliver the first floating installation of a wind turbine generator using our novel RNA method,” Heerema Marine Contractors chief operating officer Michel Hendriks said.
“This moment is also a major milestone within the offshore wind industry, and Heerema will continue to develop and enhance our capabilities for the floating installation of offshore wind farms.”
To speed up the installation process, assembly and lifting operations are happening in parallel, the companies explained.
One of the Thialf vessel’s two main cranes lifts the pre-assembled turbine tower to the foundation, whilst the second main crane is used to pre-assemble the turbine in parallel. or the latter, Heerema developed a method where the rotor nacelle assembly (RNA) lift takes place on a so-called “support” tower on board of the crane vessel.
The support tower provides a stable platform to allow a fast and secure assembly of the nacelle and the blades. Once pre-assembled the complete RNA is lifted as one piece onto the tower in only one lift, they added.
The reduced number of lifts between the vessel and the structure eliminates key risks of the floating installation.
Vestas has delivered RNA lift-feasible components by developing new tools to support the offshore floating installation.
“Three years ago, we committed to bringing our technology and experience to bear at Arcadis Ost 1,” Vestas northern and central Europe senior vice president Flemming Ougaard said.
“Today, we are celebrating the project’s first installation of 27 Vestas’ V174-9.5 MW turbines. We are furthermore celebrating the world's first floating installation.”
The Parkwind consortium last year was bought by Virya Energy, the energy holding of retail group Colruyt and its investment unit. The company at Arcadis Ost 1 is collaborating with project company OstseeWindEnergie, which consists of three German municipal utilities.
(Copyright)