Van Oord adapts construction techniques for North Hollandse Kust (west) wind farm

Offshore staff

ROTTERDAM, the Netherlands – Van Oord and Ecowende will co-operate on construction of the offshore wind farm on Hollandse Kust (west) lot VI in the Dutch North Sea.

One focus of the project will be to minimize the impact on the natural habitat of birds, bats and marine mammals.

Van Oord’s responsibilities cover transport and installation of the wind turbine foundations; design, procurement and laying of the connecting cables between the turbines; and finally, T&I of the turbines to their offshore locations.

Ecowende will implement mitigation and stimulation ecological measures and an extensive monitoring and research program above and below the water. Van Oord will apply quieter installation techniques than for its previous wind farm assignments, the main purpose being to allow this and future offshore wind farm developments to be assembled under stricter permit conditions.

Amongst other measures, the company will place various types of “nature-friendly” rubble around the foundations, and will work on measures to reduce the CO2 and nitrogen emissions during the construction phase.

Its new installation vessel Boreas, which can operate on methanol, will be delivered in 2025 and will work on the Ecowende project.

During the weekend Van Oord staged a naming ceremony for Calypso, its second cable-lay vessel, which will mainly install inter-array grid and export cables for offshore wind farms worldwide. It features two cable carousels, allowing it to install two cables simultaneously.

The hybrid vessel can run on biofuel, and its engines are also designed to operate using future Other highlights are a large battery pack, a shore supply connection, and an energy management system that should lead to reduced CO2, NOx and SOx emissions.

09.11.2023