Offshore substation now installed at Inch Cape Offshore Wind Farm
The Inch Cape Offshore Wind Farm offshore jacket foundation and substation platform have been successfully installed at the North Sea site of this flagship 1.1 gigawatt Scottish project.
The Siemens Energy Offshore Transformer Module (OTM®) and its 68-metre jacket foundation are now in position 21 kilometres from the Angus coast having been installed by Heerema Marine Contractors (HMC) semi-submersible crane vessel Sleipnir.
The compact 2700-tonne platform comprises two circuits with two transformers and reactors, making it Siemens Energy’s first ever double OTM®. The modular fabrication, which enables offshore wind platforms to be smaller and lighter than conventional alternating current designs, has now been in use for 10 years.
A team of more than 250 at the Smulders yard in Wallsend, Newcastle fitted out and assembled both the OTM and its jacket foundation over the past approximately 18 months. Around 80 local UK sub-contractors supported the project with work that included lifting, scaffolding, engineering and coating.
John Hill, Inch Cape Project Director said: “This has been an impressive team effort by Siemens Energy, Smulders, Heerema and the myriad smaller contractors which contributed to ensuring the safe and efficient fabrication and installation of this major Inch Cape component.”
Owned in a 50/50 equal joint venture by ESB and Red Rock Renewables, Inch Cape, is the largest offshore wind farm now in construction in Scotland. Once complete it will generate almost 5 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy each year or enough to power half the homes in Scotland.
