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The Belgian group Jan De Nul also wins the third and final contract for the installation of the wind turbines of the British Dogger Bank Wind Farm. With 277 turbines, it will be the largest offshore wind farm in the world.
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The wind farm will be located in the North Sea, off the northeast coast of England. With a capacity of 3.6 gigawatts, it will be able to power more than 6 million British homes. The power production is the largest in the world for an offshore wind farm.
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The construction of the park will take place in three phases. Jan De Nul had already won the contracts for the first two phases (95 wind turbines each) and the East Flemish group was now also awarded the contract for the third phase, it announced on Monday. The third phase is good for the transport and installation of another 87 wind turbines. Its construction is not yet final, however: we have to wait for the final investment decision at the end of this year.
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Jan De Nul previously announced that it will use the Voltaire for the project, a ship with a lifting capacity of more than 3,000 tons that is still under construction.
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The installation of the first offshore wind turbines is planned in the course of 2022. The first phase of the wind farm should be operational in 2023. Installation of the turbines for the third phase is currently scheduled to begin in 2025.
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Jan De Nul has agreed with the clients that the value of the deal will not be disclosed this time either, says spokeswoman Heleen Schellinck of the group. She does mention a ‘very large contract’. Not only because of the number of turbines, but also because of their capacity: the wind turbines of the Dogger Bank Wind Farm will deliver 13 megawatts and those of phase C even 14 megawatts.
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Exceptional
That is a lot more than the existing installations that only go up to 12 megawatts and that is also an exceptional amount. Partly because of this, the contract is difficult to compare with orders whose value is known. Due to the exceptional size of the turbines, Jan De Nul cannot work with existing installation vessels. That’s why it has the Voltaire built.
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That is a ship with a lifting capacity of more than 3,000 tons. It will enter service in 2022. Dogger Bank Wind Farm will be the first assignment of the ‘jack-up ship’, a ship equipped with four poles that allows it to rise above the water to create a stable working environment. With the piles at maximum water depth and the main crane set up, the Voltaire is as high as the Eiffel Tower.
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Jan De Nul will not disclose the revenue it generates from the construction of wind farms, with which it is active as far as the US and Taiwan. It divides its revenues (1.9 billion euros in 2020) only into dredging and offshore activities (77%), civil engineering (21%) and environmental projects (2%).
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