The first monopile has been installed at the Windanker offshore wind project site in the German Baltic Sea, marking the start of construction on Iberdrola’s third large-scale offshore wind project in the region, the company said via social media on 1 October .
The monopiles are being installed by Van Oord using its heavy-lift installation vessel Svanen at the offshore construction site located 38 kilometres northeast of Rügen in the German exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Baltic Sea.
Measuring up to 84 metres in length and weighing 2,100 tonnes, the Windanker monopiles are manufactured by Navantia and Windar Renovables under a framework agreement the Spanish companies signed with Iberdrola in the summer of 2021 for the manufacture and supply of XXL monopile foundations.
Windanker will feature 21 Siemens Gamesa 15 MW wind turbines , all of which are scheduled to be operational in 2026.
The 315 MW offshore wind farm forms part of a hub that Iberdrola is building in the Baltic Sea, which comprises three offshore wind farms and will have a total installed capacity of more than 1.1 GW and a combined investment of EUR 3.5 billion.
The other two wind farms that are part of Iberdrola’s Baltic Sea hub are the 350 MW Wikinger wind farm , already in operation, and the 476 MW Baltic Eagle , which was also recently commissioned.
“With Windanker, we are realizing the third major project of our Baltic Hub. The wind farm is not only a sustainable investment in the transformation of Germany, it also brings state-of-the-art offshore technology to the Baltic Sea, creates added value in the region and strengthens the link between German and Spanish industry” , said Felipe Montero , CEO of Iberdrola Germany.