The concrete slipforming of the 11 spar-substructures that will support floating turbines for Equinor’s 88MW Hywind Tampen offshore wind project in the North Sea has begun.
This phase is being completed at a deep-water site at Dommersnes and marks the first concrete slipforming for an offshore project on the Norwegian continental shelf since the Troll A platform was delivered in 1995.
The phase got underway with the transport of the 11 substructures from the Aker Solutions yard at Stord where the first 20 metres have been built at the deep-water site at Dommersnes.
The slipforming work will continue to 107.5 metres.
Hywind Tampen will provide electricity for the Snorre and Gullfaks offshore field operations in the Norwegian North Sea.
Hywind Tampen will be the world’s largest floating offshore wind farm and the world’s first to power offshore oil and gas platforms.
It is also the first floating wind project from Equinor using concrete technology for wind projects.
Equinor’s Hywind Tampen project director Olav-Bernt Haga said: “The project represents a direct transfer of technology from oil- and gas to renewable.
“The giant Troll A substructure was 369 metres. Now we are building 11 small Trolls. The project is on schedule despite the challenges around covid-19.”
While the concrete structures are being built at Stord and Dommersnes, the steel anchors are being welded together at Aker Solutions’ yard in Verdal.
The nacelles, blades and turbine towers will be produced in Europe and shipped to Wergelands base in Gulen.
The substructures will be towed to Gulen when the slipforming and mechanical completion work is completed at Dommersnes.
In 2022 all the elements will be collected at the site in Gulen and the assembly work will start using what is potentially the largest crane used onshore in Norway.
“We plan to start towing the completed wind turbines to Tampen early summer of 2022 and complete the offshore work by the end of the year. This is a large and complex industrial project where we use our experience from oil and gas projects,” said Haga.