EDS HV Group has completed termination and testing of the export cables at the 487MW SeaMade offshore wind project on behalf of contractor Hellenic Cables.
The work was scheduled to begin on the Mermaid concession, located 54km off the Belgian coast, by the end of March.
EDS HV said the activity was undertaken along with the team at Hellenic Cables to ensure the first phase of the project was completed to the agreed schedule, without posing risk to the EDS HV team or the personnel already located on the platform.
EDS HV Group termination and testing business manager Lee Glendening said: “Although the coronavirus pandemic presented a number of operational challenges, our engineers are used to work in challenging environments and within small teams.
“In addition our project management processes and systems are robust and we were able to adapt to ensure the safety of our team wasn’t compromised at any point, without impacting quality or timescales.”
Pre-flight preparations included individually isolating the team of seven engineers and their supervisor prior to the start of the project.
To minimise any risk during the helitransfer, the helicopter company was contacted to request that air filters were changed and a thorough deep clean of the helicopter was made prior to transfer.
The flight was scheduled directly from Norwich to the jack-up platform in order to avoid hub airports and further minimise contact.
On the platform itself additional living quarters modules were built so that the EDS HV team could be fully segregated from the personnel on the platform, including food being delivered separately.
Work was arranged in shift patterns to keep contact minimal with work areas fully disinfected after each action.
Over the course of approximately 13 days the project was completed and the team flew back.
Hellenic Cables project manager Kostas Papathanasiou added: “EDS HV are well respected in the sector and are a safe pair of hands for this type of work, we had faith in them when we awarded the contract.
“Despite the global pandemic we worked in close cooperation with them and together with our in-house resources and external subcontractors, we assembled the best team to complete the project, ensuring no downtime, delays, or safety concerns.”