The offshore wind farm developers Poland’s state-owned public power company PGE and Danish energy company Ørsted, contracted Van Oord to transport and install 111 monopiles, to support the construction of Baltica 2 wind farm project
PGE, Ørsted contracted Van Oord for Baltica 2 project. (Credit: Van Oord)
Dutch offshore services provider Van Oord has been selected for the construction of the 1.5GW Baltica 2 project, one of two phases of the Baltica offshore wind farm in Poland’s Baltic Sea.
The offshore wind farm is a joint development by Poland’s state-owned public power company PGE (Polska Grupa Energetyczna) and Danish energy company Ørsted.
PGE and Ørsted contracted Van Oord to transport and install 111 monopiles, the type of foundation that will be used in the construction of Baltica 2.
Among the total 111 monopiles, 107 will serve as foundations for wind turbines, and the remaining four will be used as foundations for offshore substations.
With a production capacity of 1.5 GW, Baltica will be Poland’s largest renewable energy project, producing adequate green energy to power around 2.4 million Polish households.
PGE Baltica management board president Arkadiusz Sekściński said: “We consistently conclude further contracts with global companies from the offshore industry for the installation of all components for the Baltica 2 project.
“We have already chartered vessels for the installation of turbines and cables, and now also a fleet that will install the foundations that commence the construction of the offshore wind farm.
“The start of installation of monopiles is scheduled for 2026, while first electricity from Baltica 2 will flow to consumers a year later.”
Van Oord is planning to deploy the offshore installation vessel Aeolus and heavy-lift installation vessel Svanen for the transportation and installation of foundations for the Baltica 2 project.
Also, the company will deploy its fallpipe vessel Nordnes to accurately and effectively install rock at all foundation locations.
The Svanen will undergo a major upgrade this year, including the extension of the gantry crane to enhance its lifting capacity.
The upgrade will enable Svanen to install the foundations for the new-generation 14MW wind turbines used at the Baltica 2 Offshore Wind Farm.
The offshore wind farm will feature extended monopiles, a type of foundations that combine a traditional monopile and a transition piece in a single element.
The extended monopiles will save lifting activities offshore and make the installation safer and faster for Van Oord’s fallpipe vessel Nordnes.
Ørsted offshore Poland managing director Agata Staniewska-Bolesta said: “Ørsted has 30 years of experience developing, sourcing, constructing and operating offshore wind farms, and together with PGE we’re committed to delivering offshore wind energy to Poland at large scale.
In 2023 we finalized contracts for the supply of all components for the offshore part of the Baltica 2 project, and we already have the last contracts ahead of us, which bring us closer to the realization of this strategic project for offshore wind energy in Poland.