71 out of the 111 Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD wind turbines have been installed at the 900 MW Greater Changhua 1 & 2a wind farm project offshore Taiwan.
In April, the first batch of turbine components was transported from the Port of Taichung, and the first turbine was installed at the site by Seajack Scylla , a wind turbine installation vessel operated by Seajacks, part of Eneti Inc.
According to AIS data, Seajacks Scylla is currently at the project site located 35-50 kilometres off the coast of Changhua County where the vessel is expected to transport and install the remaining 40 turbines.
The wind farm produced its first power in the second half of April, after the installation and energisation of the first batch of turbines.
According to Ørsted, the company continues to make good progress in all areas of the construction and still expects to fully commission the wind farm in 2023. The project was initially scheduled to be fully operational by the end of the year, but due to COVID-19-related delays, the commissioning of the wind farm was pushed to 2023.
Offshore construction on the Greater Changhua 1 and 2a wind farms started in the summer of 2021 with the installation of the first wind turbine jacket foundation and the laying of the first export cable.
In August, the final jacket foundation was installed by Heerema Marine Contractors’ heavy lift vessel Aegir .
The 605 MW Greater Changhua 1 wind farm is owned by Ørsted (50 per cent), and a consortium comprising Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and the Taiwanese private equity fund, Cathay PE (50 per cent).
The 295 MW Changhua 2a is owned solely by Ørsted.