Major scour protection completed offshore UK

The project was made more difficult because each rock berm was different, Boskalis says, adding a layer of complication to an already tricky task.

The installation had to be done in 13 trips from quarries in Norway to the offshore wind farm and back, installing in total 287,500 tons of rock over 114 days.

Iberdrola subsidiary Scottish Renewables owns the wind farm which, when switched on, will have a power generation capacity of up to 1.4GW.

The scour protection has been installed to protect the foundations of up to 100 wind turbines at the site, as well as an offshore converter station.

Latest rock installation vessel

As Rockpiper completed its task, Boskalis announced the acquisition of another subsea rock installation (SRI) vessel with a cargo capacity of 45,500 tonnes.

Windpiper, it says, will be the largest SRI vessel on the market at 227m long and 40m in breadth.

As well as a moonpool, the vessel has an inclined fall pipe, which is crucial for the protection of offshore structures such as the foundations of offshore wind turbines.

”Equipped with seven thrusters and DP2 certification, Windpiper is specifically designed for optimal performance in challenging offshore conditions,” Boskalis says.

Windpiper is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2026, with first projects expected to be in Northwest Europe.