Chantiers de l’Atlantique has completed two offshore electrical substations for the Nordseecluster offshore wind project in the German North Sea, developed by RWE and Norges Bank Investment Management. The topsides are scheduled to depart Saint-Nazaire in March for installation around 50 kilometres north of the German island of Juist, where the foundations have already been installed.
Each offshore substation measures approximately 40 metres in length and 22 metres in height. The first topside has a capacity of 225 MW and weighs 1,800 tonnes, while the second has a capacity of 433 MW with a topside weight of 2,500 tonnes. Transport to the offshore installation site will be carried out by barge, with the journey expected to take around eight days.
The first substation is supported by an 800-tonne monopile foundation, while the second uses a 2,000-tonne jacket foundation. The topside dimensions are 41 by 26 by 22 metres for the first unit and 42 by 30 by 22 metres for the second unit.
In parallel with the project milestones, Chantiers de l’Atlantique has completed an extension of its Anemos paint hall. The facility’s surface area has increased from 1,750 square metres to 3,500 square metres and is primarily used for blasting and painting structural blocks for high voltage direct current platforms under controlled ventilation, temperature and humidity conditions.
