German transmission system operator (TSO) 50Hertz has awarded a consortium comprising Siemens Energy and Neptun Smulders Offshore Renewables (NSORe) a contract to deliver the converter system for the North Sea Connector 2 grid connection project, which will be capable of transmitting up to 2 GW of offshore wind power from the North Sea to the German mainland.
The contract covers the delivery of an offshore converter platform and an onshore converter station, with commissioning scheduled by the end of 2034.
The North Sea Connector 2 includes the offshore grid connection LanWin6 and the DC32 high-voltage direct current (HVDC) connection as part of the NordOstLink.
Back in 2023, 50Hertz awarded several contracts to power cable manufacturers NKT and Prysmian, with NKT’s scope covering onshore and offshore power cable systems for SuedOstLink+ (SOL+), Ostwind 4, DC32 (NordOstLink+), LanWin6, and the hybrid interconnector for the German part of the Bornholm Energy Island project.
The offshore converter platform will be installed around 200 kilometres west of the island of Sylt in the German North Sea, while the onshore converter station will be built at a new substation near Mühlenbeck, close to Schwerin, where NordOstLink will connect to the transmission network in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The contract with Siemens Energy and NSORe marks the first time that offshore converter platforms based on Germany’s new 2 GW standard are set to be built predominantly in the country, according to 50Hertz.
NSORe, a joint venture between Meyer Werft-owned Neptun Werft and Belgian company Smulders, will fabricate the offshore platform. Most of the construction and manufacturing work will be carried out at Neptun Werft’s shipyard in Rostock-Warnemünde. Smulders will manufacture the steel jacket foundation at its yard in Vlissingen, the Netherlands.
Siemens Energy will supply the electrical transmission technology, including transformers, converters and switchgear. According to the company, around 95 per cent of its project scope for North Sea Connector 2 will be delivered from German facilities, with transformers and converters manufactured in Nuremberg and SF₆-free gas-insulated switchgear supplied from Berlin.
In addition to the EPC contract, Siemens Energy has secured a long-term service agreement covering maintenance, IT services and on-call support.
The consortium is responsible for the project’s full turnkey delivery, including system design, procurement, construction, offshore and onshore installation, and commissioning.
50Hertz is also in negotiations with NSORe on a second converter platform project, North Sea Connector 1, which includes the LanWin3 offshore grid connection and the DC31 HVDC link, also part of NordOstLink. Siemens Energy was awarded the high-voltage technology contract for that project in 2024, and Prysmian secured a contract for the cable part of the project in 2023.
If the second contract is concluded, the two projects would represent a combined volume of around EUR 2.5 billion for NSORe, largely related to manufacturing and services in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
According to 50Hertz, the projects could create more than 500 long-term jobs across participating companies and suppliers in the German state.