During October 2014 Inch Cape offshore wind farm accomplished another very important milestone in its development: an offshore met mast has been installed to gather accurate wind resource, wind direction and wind velocity data.
The mast has a gravity base foundation mainly made out of concrete. This innovative foundation type reduces the noise generated by the installation of the steel structures traditionally used and the associated negative impact on the marine fauna, especially on large mammals.
The foundation arrived in July at Invergordon (United Kingdom) from Cartagena (Spain), and after three months of work at the UK facility the mast has been installed on 11 October. The complete met mast structure was towed from Invergordon to the Inch Cape site, and was installed by filling the base with water, under controlled conditions, until the mast was positioned on the seabed and anchored. Due to its buoyancy it was towed by smaller ships than those usually used in these kind of operations.
In the coming weeks the work will continue offshore in order to deploy the telescopic lattice structure on which the instrumentation will be secured, up to its final height (169.5 m) so that the equipment can be commissioned and wind data transmitted to shore.