The 1200MW Dogger Bank C offshore wind farm in the UK is to deploy an advanced cable monitoring system to improve reliability and prevent unwanted outages.
Proserv’s holistic cable monitoring system, called Electro Cable Guard (ECG), will safeguard the continuity of offshore wind operations, ensuring stable clean power generation to six million UK homes.
Under a contract with Deme, Proserv will deploy its proprietary technology at the third phase of what will become the world’s largest wind farm once operational.
The technology is already being deployed at the A and B phases of the 3.6GW Dogger Bank offshore wind farm, as well as Hywind Scotland and Hywind Tampen, with additional projects in the pipeline.
ECG can identify signs of transmission cable failure far earlier, allowing proactive measures to be carried out to avoid costly outages.
Using unique passive electrical sensors to monitor inter-array cables and terminations, ECG delivers early fault detection that traditional systems overlook, “transforming maintenance strategies and strengthening resilience in offshore operations”.
It works by permanently and synchronously monitoring the combined effect of electrical and mechanical stresses on power cables and terminations to identify failure precursors far earlier, providing real-time insights into transmission system health.
Without needing additional power or telecoms infrastructure, it is efficient, easy to deploy, and ideal for offshore cable systems, including both cables and terminations.
Proserv’s Vice President of Renewables, Paul Cook, said: “We are incredibly proud to secure this contract, positioning Proserv as the cable monitoring provider for DEME Offshore across the three phases of the Dogger Bank project, the world’s largest offshore wind farm currently under construction.
“As more offshore wind developments come online, unplanned cable and termination failures are an increasing concern.
“This latest evolution of our breakthrough ECG system offers substantial cost savings benefits to developers and operators, addressing the widespread issue of cable failures, which account for approximately 80% of wind farm-related insurance claims.”
Located 130km off the Yorkshire coast, the Dogger Bank Wind Farm is being built in three phases with 277 turbines in total (95 at both A and B, and 87 at C).
Set for completion in 2027, it will become the world’s largest offshore wind farm, powering six million UK homes with clean energy annually.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm Senior Project Manager, Alan Evans, said: “Availability of assets is critical to the efficient supply of renewable electricity into our decarbonised energy system.
“We’ve been working with DEME and Proserv to pioneer the use of ECG monitoring technology on the first phases of our project, and we look forward to building on this relationship with Dogger Bank C.”
Developed in collaboration with Synaptec, a specialist in power system monitoring in which Proserv is a shareholder, the ECG technology combines the firm’s expertise with Proserv’s engineering and integration expertise honed in oil and gas, delivering enhanced reliability for renewable energy infrastructure projects.
The Dogger Bank C contract will be project managed, engineered and delivered by Proserv’s Great Yarmouth based team, in addition to the work being carried out at the wind farm’s A and B phases.