Credit: Hans Blomberg. Image courtesy of Vattenfall

By Ritesh Gupta

Companies mentioned: Vattenfall, 50Hertz, Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH), MidAmerican Energy Company, The Danish Energy Agency, Northland Power, RWE Innogy, TÜV SÜD, Senvion, Semco Maritime, Dong Energy, Point and Sandwick Power, SgurrEnergy, Wood Group.

Construction work for Kentish Flats Extension starts

Swedish energy company Vattenfall has shared that the offshore construction phase of Kentish Flats Extension has commenced. All wind turbines are expected to be deployed this summer with first power from the 49.5MW scheme expected later in the year.

The company highlighted that the Kentish Flats Extension, which is expected to cost more than $232 million to build, is the only wind farm to start building offshore in UK waters this year.

The work started with the piling of foundations for the 15-turbine scheme 8km offshore.

A number of large vessels will be located offshore Herne Bay and Whitstable this summer. The company is to add 15 turbines to the existing 30 at Kentish Flats.

In another development, Vattenfall has backed a Thanet-based business to build an extension to its operations centre for the major scheme. The building extension in Ramsgate harbour is being built by Ramsgate-based BEC Building and is due to be completed in the summer.

Offshore cable project Ostwind 1 moves ahead

Transmission system operator 50Hertz has shared that the approval procedure for the Ostwind 1 offshore cable project has crossed another hurdle. The public hearing for the submarine cable route in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) for the grid connection of the Westlich Adlergrund cluster (project Ostwind 1) was held recently. The project is part of the grid connection of the Westlich Adlergrund cluster and includes the connection of the Wikinger and Arkona-Becken Südost wind farms to the grid.

Post the recent hearing, the authority, the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) in Hamburg, will work out the planning approval decision under the terms of the Offshore Installations Ordinance. The Ostwind 1 project cable routes cover 90 kilometres at sea and three kilometres on land each.

50Hertz expects the final decision in the summer of 2015. The company hopes to commence preparations for the construction of the submarine cable route in the EEZ soon after.

MidAmerican Energy budgets $900m for wind power

MidAmerican Energy Company recently filed plans with the Iowa Utilities Board for the development of up to 552 MW of new wind generation in Iowa.

MidAmerican Energy is in the process of obtaining necessary permits and easements for the construction of wind farms at two new sites. The company plans to begin construction in spring 2016, with completion scheduled for the end of 2016. Total cost of the project is approximately $900 million.

Bill Fehrman, president and CEO of MidAmerican Energy said that the company’s wind energy portfolio has come a long way over the last decade. He said about 10 years ago, the company didn’t own any wind generation resources across its system. Once the proposed projects are completed, it is being projected that 57 percent of the company’s total retail load could be served with energy from these turbines.

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad also praised MidAmerican Energy’s efforts, and mentioned that the company has helped the state become a national leader in wind generation.

Tenders launched in Denmark

The Danish Energy Agency has officially launched a tender for nearshore wind farms totaling 350 MW in up to six sites.

The six sites are Vesterhav Nord, Vesterhav Syd, Sæby, Sejerø Bugt, Smålandsfarvandet and Bornholm.
The tender will be closed in the spring of 2016, and the wind farms are to be completed in 2020.

The tender material describes the conditions for the establishment, operation and decommissioning of the nearshore wind farms. The material is available from the DEA’s English website www.ens.dk/nearshorewind, for potential tenderers. The material, currently only available in Danish, will soon be translated.

The EIA reports for the six sites will be sent out for public consultation soon, after which the DEA, the Nature Agency and the Danish TSO Energinet.dk will host a public meeting at each of the six possible sites.

TÜV SÜD signs contract for Nordsee One project

Nordsee One, which is a joint venture of the Canadian Northland Power and RWE Innogy, has allotted a contract to testing and certification organisation TÜV SÜD.

TÜV SÜD is attending the construction of the new offshore wind farm Nordsee One about 40 kilometres off the North Sea island Juist. The assignment includes the monitoring of manufacturing, transport, erection/ installation and commissioning until operational release according to BSH (the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency)-standards. TÜV SÜD experts will shortly begin with the first audits at the manufacturer’s facilities where the experts will check the manufacturing conditions, under which the different components will be produced.

Upon completion in 2017, the 54 wind turbines of the type Senvion 6.2M 126 will have an electrical power of 332 MW. The offshore work for the wind farm is due to commence early next year.

Semco Maritime wins a major order

Danish contracting and engineering company Semco Maritime has bagged its largest ever contract in the offshore wind telecommunications arena. The company has been selected by Dong Energy to set up a new offshore telecommunication infrastructure in the North Sea. The total value of the assignment is $15 million.

Semco Maritime was chosen following a tender process.

The order includes construction of inter-field and offshore-to-onshore communication networks for up to four major Dong Energy operated wind turbine parks in the North Sea.

The project covers installation of a solution that would make it possible for service personal to communicate from inside a wind turbine tower.

The work includes design, procurement, fabrication, in-house testing, packing, shipping, installation, commissioning, final on-/offshore testing and after-sales service once the telecommunication solutions have been installed offshore.

Beinn Ghrideag completes construction

The UK’s largest community owned wind farm, Beinn Ghrideag, has completed construction. The project, developed by Point and Sandwick Power, is located west of Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland’s Outer Hebridean Islands. The project gained technical advisory support from SgurrEnergy, a Wood Group company.

With construction now complete, SgurrEnergy will undertake ongoing operational management support for five years to optimise the project’s energy production

SgurrEnergy has been involved with this project for nine years or so. It has supported the developer with expertise spanning feasibility and development, contractual support and most recently, project management and technical advisory services during the construction phase.

Point and Sandwick Development Trust (PSDT) was formed after a series of public meetings held in Point, Isle of Lewis in 2005 to discuss ways in which the community could benefit from renewable energy.