MPI Offshore Installs Final Rampion Wind Turbine

The last of 116 wind turbines at the Rampion offshore wind farm was installed today. 

Further construction and commissioning work will now continue on both the offshore and onshore substations, as well as work to complete the onshore cable route, before the electrical infrastructure is complete and ready to carry power generated from the wind farm.

Two jack up vessels – MPI Discovery and MPI Adventure – have worked on the turbine installation since March, when the first MHI Vestas 3.45MW was erected some 13km off Sussex, UK.

The vessels had been transporting the components for eight turbines at a time from Esbjerg in Denmark and then installing them at the offshore construction site.

Each turbine consists of an 80 metre tower, weighing approximately 200 tonnes, which has been lifted and positioned onto each foundation, a nacelle, fitted to the top of each tower, which houses the generator and gearbox and three blades, each measuring 55 metres in length which have been hoisted and connected one at a time.

The 400MW offshore wind farm is scheduled to generate first electricity later this year.

The project is due to be completed and fully operational in 2018.

The offshore wind farm is being built by E.ON, the UK Green Investment Bank Ltd and Canadian energy infrastructure company Enbridge.