James Fisher Marine Services (JFMS) has been awarded a contract by ScottishPower Renewables to perform scheduled maintenance on the 714MW East Anglia 1 offshore wind farm off the east coast of England.
The contract will have a positive impact on the local Lowestoft area, creating at least 20 new jobs while the company works both onshore and offshore to service the wind farm.
JFMS operations and maintenance director Scott McMillan said: “As a company rooted in Lowestoft, we are really proud to be part of a local supply chain that celebrated a collective achievement when the wind farm generated first power earlier this year, and made huge strides towards helping to produce the clean energy the UK needs, whilst also providing opportunities to the people and businesses of East Anglia.”
JFMS has already carried out work on the project, including seabed clearance, unexploded ordnance investigation and removal, general marine services and an integrated package of marine coordination software.
ScottishPower Renewables project director Charlie Jordan said: “We’re delighted to have such a strong supply chain in East Anglia and we’re really pleased to be furthering our working relationship with the James Fisher team.
“Many fantastic companies from across the East of England have played important roles in bringing East Anglia 1 to fruition and we are committed to working with the region’s businesses on our current and future East Anglia wind farms.”
James Fisher and Sons executive director Fergus Graham said: “We’re delighted to extend our close working relationship with ScottishPower Renewables and the East Anglia 1 team as we work together to drive down the cost of operations and maintenance.
“I am proud of what JFMS has achieved so far, and I’m sure everyone on the team will continue to be fully committed to supporting this vital project.”
ScottishPower Renewables opened an O&M base in Lowestoft in October.
The wind farm delivered first power in August, with the 7MW Siemens Gamesa hardware to be fully commissioned next year.
Macquarie’s Green Investment Group has a 40% stake in the project.