Bladt, Semco triple time at Hornsea

Bladt Industries and Semco Maritime are to build a trio of substation topsides for Dong Energy’s 1.2GW Hornsea 1 offshore wind farm in the UK.

The deal for what will be the world’s largest wind farm marks the first time the fabricator has secured contracts for three of the offshore units at the same time.

Bladt will be responsible for fabricating the steel structures of the substation topsides with Semco tackling electrical works including design, onshore construction and offshore commissioning.

Each of the topsides will weigh roughly 2800 tonnes and measure 36x23x20 metres. The initial unit will be ready for delivery in spring 2018.

“We have a deep respect for the great responsibility Dong Energy has provided us with in the delivery of three substation topsides for this strategic project, said Bladt chief executive Jan Kjærsgaard.

He said the triple order will allow for ongoing cost savings and “a further reduction of the long-term price per produced kWh from wind farms”.

Hornsea will feature a total of four substations. The final unit will be a mid-point reactive compensation substation, given the wind farm’s location some 120km off the coast of Yorkshire.

Image: the Bladt-built Borkum Riffgrund substation being lifted into place (Dong)