Smulders has loaded out and sent off the first four of the 95 transition pieces for the first phase of Dogger Bank Wind Farm from its yard in Hoboken, Belgium.
The first batch of transition pieces was loaded out on 19 and 20 April and shipped to Sif’s Maasvlakte 2 terminal in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, for storage.
The Dogger Bank transition pieces have a diameter of eight metres and weigh about 550 tons, making them the widest and heaviest transition pieces ever manufactured in Hoboken, Smulders said.
In November 2020, the consortium Sif-Smulders was awarded the contract for the manufacture of all 190 monopiles and transition pieces for Dogger Bank A & B, the first two phases of Dogger Bank Wind Farm. In late 2021, the consortium was also awarded the contract for the third phase of the wind farm, Dogger Bank C.
Sif completed and rolled out the first several monopiles for Dogger Bank A earlier this year.
The 277 monopile foundations provided for the project by Smulders and Sif will support the GE Haliade-X 13 MW and GE Haliade-X 14 MW turbines scheduled to deliver the first electricity in 2023.
The 3.6 GW Dogger Bank wind farm is slated for full commissioning in 2026, when it will become the largest operating wind farm in the world. The farm is located more than 130 kilometres off the Yorkshire coast in the UK and comprises three 1.2 GW phases.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a joint venture between SSE Renewables (40 per cent), Equinor (40 per cent) and Eni Plenitude (20 per cent).