- By Chinonye Anyatonwu
The world’s largest offshore wind farm which is designated to be completed by 2022 is taking shape at an unprecedented pace. The project is located approximately 89 km, or 55.3 miles off the Yorkshire coast in the North Sea and adjacent to Hornsea One.
In a recent boost for the project, the first six transition pieces for the offshore wind farm have now arrived at the Buss Terminal of the Dutch town of Eemshaven. The recent development was announced by The Buss Energy Group. A recent analyses of the vessel traffic in the Hornsea area and reveals that there was an offshore construction vessel, namely Innovation that is supporting installation work. Another Vessel called PACIFIC ORCA is contracted to support installation works in 2021.
Five years ago, the project developer, which was previously known as Dong Energy, gained the rights to the project through the acquisition of SMartWind, a joint venture between Mainstream Renewable Power (50%) and Siemens Financial Services (50%).
The Hornsea Zone which covers an area of 4,735km² has the potential to generate more than 4GW of renewable energy, which would account for 4% of the UK’s overall power generation capacity. The zone is situated off the Yorkshire coast, where the normal water depth ranges between 30m and 40m, reaching to a maximum depth of 70m.
The world’s largest offshore wind farm will comprise 165 Siemens Gamesa 8.0-167 DD turbines. The turbines will operate at a nominal power of 8,000kW, providing electricity to some 2 million British households. With a total capacity of 1,386MW, the wind farm is expected to be the largest of its kind worldwide upon its completion. Buss Terminal Eemshaven serves as the base port for the project after the company won a tendering procedure from the client Deme Offshore in February.
