‘Boreas’ booked for ‘most ecological wind farm’

The JV has hired Vestas to make the wind turbines, which will be installed at the Hollandse Kust West site VI, 53km off the coast of Ijmuiden in the Netherlands.

Van Oord will transport and install the foundations and turbines as well as lay, connect and bury the inter-connecting cables.

Ecowende says a vibro hammer will use vibrations to drive the monopiles to their required depths in what it says will be the first large-scale use of the technique.

Installation vessel Boreas, which is still under build, will transport and install the turbines. The vessel is a dual-fuel diesel/methanol vessel with a 5,000kWh battery pack, which it can use when in port.

Cable layer Nexus will connect the inter-array cables.

In another nod to the environment, Ecowende says it will use scour protection to avoid the effects of erosion.

“This is achieved by high-precision rock installation around the foundations,” it says. “Van Oord has advised Ecowende on nature-enhancing components in the design of the scour protection to help stimulate a diverse habitat for marine life.

“One of Van Oord’s flexible fallpipe vessels will be deployed to accurately and efficiently install the eco-friendly scour protection.”

The Ecowende wind farm will have an operational capacity of approximately 760MW, contributing 3% of the current Dutch electricity. Ecowende plans to have the wind farm fully operational and commissioned in 2026.