The official opening of Sif Netherlands’s factory at Maasvlakte 2, Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, has occurred with a ceremony attended by Minister Sophie Hermans of Climate Policy and Green Growth.
The existing 40,000 sq m facilities in Rotterdam are expanded by 60,000 sq m and are transformed from a more traditional assembly plant to a fully integrated robotised production line for monopile foundations up to 11 metres diameter and 120 metres length.
The theoretical production capacity of the expanded factory is approximately 200 monopiles a year.
At Sif’s Maasvlakte factory “we see the energy transition actually taking place,” Hermans (pictured left) said.
The expansion cost €328m and entailed a 16-month construction period.
The project was delivered on time and within budget.
“Sif stands for reliability and innovation and guarantees consistently high standards when it comes to safety and quality.
“The opening of the expanded location in Rotterdam is an important next step that enables Sif to supply the next generation monopile foundations with diameters up to 11 meters.
“The proximity of the location to most European offshore wind developments and the 24/7 accessibility of the quay facilities for installation vessels serve our customers in optimizing their installation campaigns with state-of-the-art foundations,” said Fred van Beers, CEO of Sif Holding NV (pictured right).
The first projects for the expanded factory are the Empire Wind 1 and Ecowende offshore wind farms in the United States and the Netherlands respectively.
Of the 54 foundations for Empire Wind 1, more than 30 monopiles and all primary steel for the transition pieces have been completed.
Production of the 52 TP-less monopile foundations for Ecowende will start shortly.
Planned projects are the monopiles and transition pieces for Baltyk 2&3 in Poland and the monopiles for Oranjewind in the Netherlands.
“Key to the successful realization of the project was the integrated process approach with the design-team, the construction team and suppliers of core equipment such as welding and milling lines, rolling units, and special equipment as part of our automated production lines,” says Frank Kevenaar, COO of Sif Holding NV.
“It was an operation that was set-up and executed with military precision and we thank all of the participants in this project for their disciplined execution.”