Former Fish Auction Building in Port of Den Helder to Become OranjeWind O&M Base

December 17, 2024, by Adrijana Buljan

RWE and TotalEnergies, through a joint venture that will soon start building the OranjeWind project off the Dutch coast, have signed a lease agreement with the co-operative association Blue Port Centre, the owner of the former fish auction building at the port of Den Helder, to use the facility as the operations and maintenance (O&M) base for the 795 MW offshore wind farm.

Artist impression of the Blue Port Centre O&M base; Image: RWE

The OranjeWind site in the North Sea is located about 80 kilometres from the port of Den Helder.

“Our former fish auction building, still owned by regional fishermen, will get a new purpose after a significant renovation. The building will be nearly ‘energy neutral’ with super-insulated walls and roofs, solar panels, heating with heat pumps, and top cooling based on the temperature of the groundwater. Located on the deep-water quay, it is perfectly suited as a base for the maintenance of offshore wind farms. With the arrival of OranjeWind, two-thirds of the building is occupied”, said Pim Visser, Director of the Blue Port Centre.

The OranjeWind project will start using the Blue Port Centre in 2026 to support the construction phase of the wind farm. Once the operation and maintenance activities start in 2028, a Service Operation Vessel (SOV) will transport technicians between the port of Den Helder and the wind farm, with the crew staying at sea for weeks at a time.

“The multifunctionality of the Blue Port Centre and its quay-side location makes it a perfect fit for our operations and maintenance of our Dutch North Sea wind project. The proximity and accessibility of Den Helder port and airport provide an efficient logistical solution for reaching our wind farm, enhancing our operational flexibility”, said Matthias Esken, OranjeWind Project Director for RWE.

The news about the lease agreement with Blue Port Centre comes a week after the OranjeWind joint venture signed an agreement with Buss Terminal Eemshaven to use the Port of Eemshaven as the base for wind turbine assembly and construction work for the 795 MW offshore wind project.

OranjeWind is RWE and TotalEnergies’ first offshore wind project in the Netherlands. RWE is leading the development, construction and operation of the wind farm on behalf of the partnership.

The two companies have also partnered in Germany. In October, TotalEnergies signed an agreement with RWE to acquire a 50 per cent stake in two offshore wind projects in the German North Sea, N-9.1 and N-9.2, which were awarded to RWE in August 2024. Investment decisions for these projects are expected to be made in 2027 and 2029, with the offshore wind farms expected to be built and in operation in 2031 and 2032.