GE Renewable Energy announced that it has finalized supply contracts (subject to final notification to proceed) with Dogger Bank Wind Farm (a 50:50 JV between SSE Renewables and Equinor) for the first two phases of what will become the world’s largest offshore wind farm. These first two phases (Dogger Bank A & B) will each feature 95 Haliade-X 13 MW wind turbines.
The agreements will include a total of 190 units of the 13 MW Haliade-X wind turbine, and a five-year Service & Warranty agreement to provide operational support for the wind turbines. GE’s Service team will be co-located with the Dogger Bank Operational and Maintenance team, based out of the Port of Tyne.
The Haliade-X 13 MW is an enhanced version of the successful 12 MW unit which has been operating in Rotterdam since November 2019 and which recently secured its provisional type certificates from DNV-GL. The uprated 13 MW Haliade-X will also feature 107-meter long blades and 220-meter rotor. One spin of the Haliade-X 13 MW can generate enough electricity to power a UK household for more than two days.
The Service & Warranty agreements for the first two phases of Dogger Bank Wind Farm will account for around 120 of the Operational and Maintenance jobs that will be based from the Port of Tyne. In addition, GE Renewable Energy has also confirmed that it will establish its marshalling construction team activities at Able Seaton Port in Hartlepool. This port will serve as the hub for all equipment marshalling, installation and commissioning activities, resulting in the creation of an estimated 120 jobs during the construction period. Recruitment activities are likely to begin early next year.
The contracts with Dogger Bank Wind Farm are subject to a Notice to Proceed from project joint venture partners SSE Renewables and Equinor. Financial close on Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B is expected in late 2020.
The Dogger Bank Wind Farm is located over 130 km off the north-east coast of England and will be capable of powering up to 4.5 million homes each year when complete in 2026. Due to its size and scale, the site is being built in three consecutive phases; Dogger Bank A, Dogger Bank B and Dogger Bank C. Each project is expected to generate around 6 TWh of electricity annually.
The Haliade-X platform continues to undergo a rigorous series of tests at the UK’s Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult testing facility in Blyth, at Boston’s Wind Technology Testing Center in the US, and at the prototype site in Rotterdam, Netherlands. This prototype unit in the Netherlands, which set a world record in January 2020 by being the first wind turbine to produce 288 MWh in one day, will start operating at 13 MW in the coming months as part of its ongoing testing and certification process.
GE Renewable Energy will continue its testing and Research & Development activities on Haliade-X platform in the UK by partnering with ORE Catapult and other institutions to develop programs that reduce the time people spend at sea, to increase safety and the use of robotics, digital and remote operations to help reduce energy costs.
