Elia Requires Contractor for Belgian Artificial Island

Elia requires a contractor to carry out study, construction and maintenance of an artificial island, Alpha, which is to be located approx. 45kms offshore from the port of Zeebrugge on the Lodewijk bank and characterised by a depth of approx. 30m LAT.

The primary function of the island is the creation of a permanent and sustainable sub-structure for the offshore high-voltage station (OHVS), Alpha, as a hub for connecting the offshore wind farms to the coast.

The entire island must be designed, built and maintained so that the construction, installation, maintenance and access to OHVS Alpha comply with the requirements imposed on the principal.

The functional requirements for the island are currently defined as follows:

• Equipped with all infrastructure and installations for the construction, foundation and maintenance of and access to the OHVS (approx. 60m x 40m, 9m high) and all its components, and for the construction, foundation and maintenance of all cable connections, including construction of a cable basement (est. height: 4.5m);
• Helicopter landing pad;
• Protected embankment.

In its design, installation and maintenance, the tenderer must also take account of the fact that the construction of the island must be modular so that any additional functionality is easy to implement without any loss of existing functionality and with minimal effort.

Looking to the future, the need to, for instance, expand the island by building an HVDC converter station can result in a larger useful surface area for the island.

In addition, during design, construction and maintenance, account must be taken and appropriate adjustments made in line with the fact that the OHVS on Alpha will be connected using various high farms and export cables to the coast and to the OHVS at position Beta

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Offshore WIND staff, June 21, 2013; Image:Elia