Norther N. V. has taken Final Investment Decision (FID) for the Norther project and awarded MHI Vestas with a contract for the supply of 44 of its 8MW wind turbines. Van Oord has been hired as the Balance of Plant contractor.
The V164-8.0 MW turbines have been optimised for the project, utilising a power mode to be able to deliver a maximum output of 8.4MW.
Van Oord’s activities encompass the engineering, procurement, supply and installation of 44 wind turbine foundations, the Offshore High Voltage Station (OHVS), inter-array and export cables, as well as the installation of the turbines.
For the transport and installation of the foundations and turbines Van Oord intends to deploy its offshore installation vessel Aeolus and cable-laying vessel Nexus.
The project is owned by Norther N.V. a joint venture between Elicio and Boreas with three sponsors: Elicio N.V. (50%), Eneco (25%) and Mitsubishi Corporation (25%) .
“Project Norther and its shareholders Elicio, Eneco and Mitsubishi Corporation are proud to conclude that after a long period of intense preparation and thanks to all parties involved we have been able to achieve financial close. Construction now really can begin,” said Dennis Sanou , project director Norther.
“We are sure that the construction and commissioning of Norther in 2018 and 2019 will be a successful endeavour with reliable and experienced partners as grid operator Elia, turbine supplier MHI Vestas and subsea contractor Van Oord,” Sanou said.
MHI Vestas Offshore Wind today reported it won the competitive tender process and was awarded the contract for the Norther offshore wind farm. “We are extremely pleased that Elicio, Eneco and Mitsubishi Corporation chose MHI Vestas Offshore Wind using a competitive tender process,” CEO Jens Tommerup said. “Historically, MHI Vestas has had a strong footprint in the Belgium market and we know that our technology is well suited to conditions in the region.”
Norther, with an awarded grid capacity of 370MW, is located in the Belgian North Sea, approximately 23 km off the coast of Zeebrugge and will able to produce clean energy to cover the consumption of 400,000 Belgian households.
The construction will start in 2018. When commissioned in 2019, the project will be Belgium’s largest wind farm.