Vattenfall and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) have selected EEW Special Pipe Constructions (EEW SPC) to supply 69 monopile foundations for the first phase of the 2 GW Zeevonk offshore wind project in the Dutch North Sea.
The foundations will use a transition-piece-less (TP-less) design, allowing the wind turbine towers to be installed directly onto the monopiles instead of using transition pieces.
According to the developers, the design reduces the amount of steel and other materials required for the foundations and can also simplify logistics and installation. The approach was included among the circularity measures committed to during the project’s permitting process.
EEW SPC will manufacture the monopiles at its facility in Rostock, Germany. The foundations will then be prepared for transport and installation at the Zeevonk site, located between 63 and 84 kilometres off the Dutch coast.
The developers also plan to use lower-carbon steel with a high share of recycled material for one of the monopiles. The Zeevonk joint venture said secondary raw materials will reduce emissions associated with steel production and contribute to the project’s circularity targets.
The foundation supply contract follows a recent award to DEME for the transport and installation of the foundations for Zeevonk’s first phase.
In May, Vattenfall and CIP also awarded TKF a contract covering the design, engineering, manufacturing, testing and supply of approximately 162 kilometres of 66 kV inter-array cables for the first phase. The cables will be produced at TKF’s facility in Eemshaven, with the project incorporating lower-emission and recycled materials in the cable supply as well.
Zeevonk is being developed by Vattenfall and CIP through CIP’s Energy Transition Fund I at the IJmuiden Ver Beta offshore wind site, which the partners won in a Dutch tender in 2024. The project is planned in two phases.
The first phase is expected to add 1 GW of offshore wind capacity to the Dutch electricity grid in 2029. The second phase is planned for 2032 and will add another 1 GW of offshore wind capacity alongside 500 MW of system integration capacity, including an electrolyser in the Port of Rotterdam for green hydrogen production.
The full Zeevonk project will cover approximately 650 square kilometres of the Dutch North Sea. Phase 1 remains subject to a final investment decision, according to the developers.