Ostwind 1 Export Cable Installation Reaching Halfway Mark

The installation of the Ostwind 1 offshore cable system that will link the 385MW Arkona and the 350MW Wikinger offshore wind farms in the German part of the Baltic Sea to an onshore substation in Lubmin is progressing as planned, 50Hertz Transmission GmbH reports.

The UK-flagged cable lay vessel Cable Enterprise laid a 27-kilometre segment of a 90-kilometre export cable in June. This is the longest out of four sections of subsea cables to be installed. The subsea cable was manufactured by Prysmian and loaded onto the Cable Enterprise in Prysmian’s factory in Arco Felice near Naples, Italy.

The Cable Enterprise is currently installing a 25-kilometre piece of the export cable, and is working at a pace of at least two kilometres of the cable buried at a depth of five feet per day, 50Hertz said.

Meanwhile, works are underway to clear the remainder of the export cable route and prepare for the installation of the remaining two sections of the cable in shallower waters and closer to shore.

The export cable will be linked to the offshore substation Andalucia, currently en route to the installation site, which will collect and distribute the power generated by the two wind farms to the mainland.

The Ostwind 1 project is part of the grid connection of the Westlich Adlergrund cluster. The cable route covers 90 kilometres at sea and three kilometres on land, terminating at the 50Hertz substation of Lubmin. The grid connections should be ready by the end of 2018.

Offshore WIND Staff; Photos: 50Hertz