640 MW Yunlin Offshore Wind Farm Enters Final Installation Phase

August 23, 2024, by Adnan Memija

All transition pieces (TPs) have been installed at the 640 Yunlin offshore wind farm in Taiwan. With all 80 monopiles and 68 wind turbines now in place – 52 of which are already feeding clean electricity into the grid – the project has moved into its final installation phase.

Major offshore construction work at the Yunlin offshore wind farm started in December 2020 with the installation of the first monopile. The first of the project’s 80 Siemens Gamesa 8 MW wind turbines was installed in April 2021.

The 2024 offshore construction campaign commenced in March with the installation of monopiles following the winter break, and by July, all 80 monopiles and 72 TPs had been installed.

NMDC Energy, formerly NPCC, was responsible for the monopile installation while Jumbo Offshore carried out the TP installation.

Fred. Olsen Windcarrier (FOWIC) and Shimizu collaborated to handle the transportation and installation of monopile foundations in 2024.

The wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) Blue Wind, under a contract with FOWIC, is engaged as the installation vessel for both monopiles, in addition to the DLS-4200 of NMDC Energy, and wind turbines, in addition to Seajacks Zaratan.

As part of the key localization initiatives, including 40 monopiles and 40 transition pieces, the Yunlin project team has partnered with Taiwan’s Formosa Heavy Industries and CTCI Machinery.

So far, all 80 foundations and 68 Siemens Gamesa 8 MW wind turbines have been installed, with 52 of these units already feeding clean electricity into the grid.

“Completing the foundation installation marks a crucial step towards finishing the Yunlin Offshore Wind Farm project”, said Patrick Lammers, CEO of Skyborn Renewables.

Additionally, 56 out of the 69 inner array grids and all twelve export cables are now in place, marking the commencement of the project’s final installation phase, said Skyborn Renewables.

According to Skyborn, the project team continues to collaborate with all partners to ensure steady construction progress and remains on track for full completion of the Yunlin offshore wind farm by the end of 2024.

Located in the Taiwan Strait, between 8 and 17 kilometres off the west coast of Taiwan, the 640 MW project will comprise 80 wind turbines, whose clean electricity will be fed into the power grid via two onshore substations near the townships of Taixi and Sihu in Yunlin County.

Renewable energy from the wind farm is provided to Taiwan Power Co. under two 20-year power purchase agreements (PPAs).

Once completed, the project will be Taiwan’s second-largest offshore wind farm and will produce enough renewable energy to serve the electricity needs of more than 600,000 Taiwanese households, said Skyborn Renewables.