UK: Wood Group to Install Two Weather Monitoring Stations

Wood Group has been awarded a £17 million management contract to fabricate, install, commission, operate and maintain two weather monitoring stations in one of the UK’s largest offshore wind farm developments off the Norfolk and Suffolk coast.

The project will be delivered by the Wood Group Kenny business unit, including leading renewable energy consultancy SgurrEnergy. The masts will collect vital wind data that will be used to design the wind farm and estimate the long term energy production of the site.

SgurrEnergy will manage the supply, installation and commissioning of the full instrumentation, power and ancillary top side monitoring equipment using Carl C lattice tower met masts. Fabrication and offshore installation management of the monopile structure to support the equipment platform and tower met mast will be undertaken by Wood Group Kenny, applying its extensive offshore industry experience.

Fabrication of the meteorological (met) masts will start in November 2012 and installation in the East Anglia Offshore Wind Zone is planned for summer 2013. As part of the operation and maintenance contract Wood Group Kenny has already recruited four employees to fill key positions within the project.

The Wood Group companies involved have a long track record of delivering renewable energy projects on a global basis and provide expertise at all stages of the project life cycle, ensuring successful delivery of fully integrated projects.

ScottishPower Renewables and Vattenfall, the joint developers of the East Anglia Offshore Wind zone, have said that the offshore weather monitoring stations will provide essential data for an area bigger than Norfolk and inform key technical and engineering decisions for the wind farm. Steve Wayman, CEO of Wood Group Kenny said “We are pleased to secure this important project for East Anglia Offshore Wind, bringing the skills we have developed over 30 years working offshore to the fast developing offshore wind industry. This project win highlights the combined capability of Wood Group Kenny companies involved in this key project.”

 Robbie Gibson, SgurrEnergy’s measurement team leader added “SgurrEnergy is looking forward to working with East Anglia Offshore Wind on the largest ever offshore met mast project installed in UK waters. Supplying and installing top side equipment and providing O&M services to East Anglia Offshore Wind will utilise the offshore and measurement expertise that SgurrEnergy has developed over its 10 years in renewables. Working together with Wood Group Kenny is key in the delivery of this offshore met mast project, and the project further strengthens this important future linkage.”

East Anglia Offshore Wind is a 50-50 joint venture between Scottish Power Renewables and Vattenfall. The project has the potential to deliver 7,200 megawatts of installed capacity, which is capable of generating sufficient clean green energy to power five million homes.

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Press release, October 30, 2012; Image: eastangliawind