Pioneering Spirit installs Hollandse Kust (zuid) Alpha platform

Allseas’ multipurpose platform installation and removal vessel Pioneering Spirit has installed the offshore transformer station of the Hollandse Kust (zuid) Alpha platform on the jacket in the North Sea, about 20 kilometres off the coast of The Hague.

The transformer station, also called topside, is one of the two topsides of the Hollandse Kust (zuid) offshore grid, which will connect the offshore wind farm area with the same name to the Dutch onshore high-voltage grid.

Over the past year, contractor Petrofac has been working on the fabrication of two High Voltage Alternating Current (HVAC) transformer stations Alpha and Beta at the Drydocks World fabrication yard in Dubai. Mid-November, Mammoet, a specialist in heavy transport and lifting, took care of the weighing and loading of the 3,830-tonne Alpha topside onto the transport vessel Tai An Kou. From Dubai, the Tai An Kou sailed in one month to the Alexiahaven on the Maasvlakte, where it arrived on Tuesday December 21st.

Pioneering Spirit called up for the job

In the Alexiahaven, the Alpha topside was loaded from the transport vessel onto the Pioneering Spirit, which then sailed to the installation location in the North Sea. After completion of preparatory work, Pioneering Spirit accurately positioned the Alpha topside on the substructure, also known as jacket.

“It is great to be involved in an energy project of such strategic importance to the Netherlands,” said Edward Heerema, president and CEO of Allseas.

Significant milestone in the delivery of this important energy transition project

Sami Iskander, Petrofac Group Chief Executive, adds, “The safe installation of the Alpha topside is a significant milestone in the delivery of this important energy transition project.”

The Beta topside – also with a capacity of 700 MW – is expected to follow in the first quarter of next year. When the wind farm area Hollandse Kust (zuid), developed by wind farm developer Vattenfall, is fully operational in 2023, it will generate an amount of renewably energy that is equivalent to the annual consumption of more than two million households. Hollandse Kust (zuid) is the first subsidy-free wind farm area in the world.