Dogger Bank Wind Farms is a 50/50 joint venture between Equinor and SSE Renewables and the project will be record-breaking in every way. Not only will it have the highest total capacity in the world with a total output of 3.6 Gigawatt, but it will also sport GE’s new 12 MW Haliade-X turbines, which will soon become the most powerful wind turbine generator on the market.

It seems only fitting that the Jan de Nul’s “next-generation” installation vessel will install the mega wind turbines. Once finished, the Voltaire will boast a 3,000-tonne Huisman main crane and have twice the deck size of Jan de Nul’s current installation vessels, making it the largest vessel of its kind. This is the first contract for the vessel, which will enter into service in 2022.

“The size of this giant project coincides perfectly with the capacities of our jack-up vessel Voltaire. It underlines that we are entering into a new phase of offshore wind farm construction. We are proud to be at the forefront of it at Dogger Bank”, says Philippe Hutse, Offshore Director at Jan De Nul Group.
offshore wind construction at Dogger Bank.”

The Dogger Bank Wind Farms will be located 130 kilometres off the coast of Yorkshire in water depths of up to 35 metres. It will generate enough electricity to power 4.5 million homes every year, which equals around 5% of the UK’s electricity needs.

Record low prices were awarded for the three projects making up Dogger Bank Wind Farms: Creyke Beck A, Creyke Beck B and Teesside A. The project is now moving towards final investment decision, which expected in 2020. Within the joint venture, SSE Renewables is responsible for the development and construction of Dogger Bank Wind Farms while Equinor will lead on operations.

The first project is expected to be operational in 2023.