Sif and Smulders Supplying All Foundations for World’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm

A consortium between Sif and Smulders has signed a contract for the manufacture of all 87 monopiles and transition pieces for Dogger Bank C, the third and final phase of what will become the world’s largest offshore wind farm.

The contract follows the same work awarded to the Sif-Smulders consortium a year ago, when the two partners secured foundation supply for the project’s first two phases, Dogger Bank A and B.

For these first two phases, the companies will manufacture and deliver 190 monopiles and transition pieces.

The new contract, which is still subject to financial close on Dogger Bank C, will see the same allocation of responsibilities within the consortium as for the contracts for Dogger Bank A and B.

Namely, Sif is responsible for the fabrication and supply of the monopiles and primary steel for the transition pieces, and for the marshalling of all foundation components at its Maasvlakte 2 Rotterdam terminal, while Smulders will manufacture the secondary steel and assemble, coat, and test the fully equipped transition pieces.

The 87 monopiles and transition pieces for Dogger Bank C will lead to the production of approximately 130 kton of steel, according to Sif.

“Together with the phases A and B of Dogger Bank, Dogger Bank C extends our order book to well into 2024, allowing us time to prepare for expected demand for larger foundations for the period 2025 and beyond. With more than 400 Kton for the years 2022 and beyond, our order book covers a more than 2 years production period. The Dogger Bank C was already included in our order book as a project under exclusive negotiations”, said Fred van Beers, CEO of Sif Holding.

The Dogger Bank wind farm is located more than 130 kilometres off the Yorkshire coast in the UK. The 3.6 GW project’s three phases will each have a capacity of 1.2 GW, with 2.4 GW Dogger Bank A and B planned to be operational by 2024 and Dogger Bank C to follow later with the operation date scheduled for 2026.

Dogger Bank A and B is a joint venture between SSE Renewables (40 per cent), Equinor (40 per cent) and Eni (20 per cent).

Earlier this month, SSE Renewables and Equinor, 50:50 joint venture partners in Dogger Bank C, announced Eni would also take a 20 per cent stake in the final phase, with SSE Renewables and Equinor maintaining 40 per cent stakes each. The transaction is expected to be completed at the beginning of 2022, subject to Dogger Bank C financial close and regulatory approvals.