The construction of the operations & maintenance (O&M) base for RWE’s Thor offshore wind farm has officially started with a ground-breaking ceremony at the Port of Thorsminde. The construction works on the new base are scheduled to take around twelve months.
A team of 50 to 60 people will work from the new building to operate and maintain the 1 GW Thor, Denmark’s largest offshore wind farm to date.
The service building will cover 2,300 square metres on three floors and will comprise a control room to monitor and manage wind farm activities, warehousing, office facilities and a conference room as well as a canteen and rooftop terrace.
RWE expects the O&M team will move into the new service base at the end of 2025 and from spring 2026, crew transfer vessels (CTVs) will take workers offshore on a daily basis.
The Danish Energy Agency (DEA) recently granted RWE the offshore construction permit for the Thor offshore wind farm, enabling the developer to begin offshore work in spring 2025.
Currently, onshore work is underway with the laying of cables at land and the construction of an onshore substation in the municipality of Lemvig.
At the beginning of 2025, seabed preparation for the construction activities will take place and offshore construction will then kick off in spring with the installation of the foundations. Turbine installation is scheduled to begin in 2026 and is planned to be performed from the port of Esbjerg. Thor is expected to be fully operational by no later than the end of 2027, RWE says.
The 1 GW offshore wind farm, located approximately 22 kilometres off the west coast of Jutland, will feature Siemens Gamesa SG 14-236 DD wind turbines installed on monopile foundations. Of the 72 turbines, 40 will be equipped with recyclable blades .