Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy has been awarded a 10-year extension to its service contract for the 630MW London Array offshore wind farm in the Thames Estuary.
The deal builds on the existing contract that covered the first five years of operation at the project, which consists of 175 Siemens SWT 3.6MW turbines.
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy Service managing director Grant Walker said: “By having a 10-year contract award, we will be able to focus on the longer term – operational efficiencies, cost reduction for both the customer and the end consumer, as well as stability to demonstrate that wind power is now mainstream, and the cheapest form of large-scale power generation.”
London Array general manager Jonathan Duffy said: “The signing of this contract provides us with a proven, long-term partner who can help ensure London Array continues to operate at optimum efficiency and produces the clean electricity the country needs.”
Meanwhile, repairs are being carried out on two inter-array cables at the wind farm.
Two faults were detected in the first quarter of 2017 and investigations to determine the cause are ongoing.
Duffy told reNEWS the faults had resulted in “a limited impact” on production, as the wind farm’s configuration allowed affected turbines to be connected to the offshore substation by other routes.
“All wind turbines remain contacted to the grid and are capable of exporting electricity,” he said.
Multi-purpose vessel Stemat 82 has arrived on site to assist operations, which will see cable extraction and replacement operations carried out.
Repairs started on 16 April and are expected to continue until 28 May.
London Array is owned by Eon (30%), Dong Energy (25%), Masdar (20%) and La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (25%).
Image: London Array
