DEME Offshore has completed the installation of secondary steel at the 257 MW Arcadis Ost 1 offshore wind farm in Germany. With the conclusion of 28 XXL monopiles during the summer, Parkwind and DEME Offshore are running preparations for the installation of wind turbine generators and work is set to start during the next month. 

Secondary steel includes boat landings, platforms and corrosion protection systems, and represents a total of 3,700 tonnes of steel and 30 km of electrical cables. DEME is responsible for the EPCI scope for the foundations at Arcadis Ost 1.

Due to challenging soil conditions, which means jack-up operations cannot be carried out in the area, DEME’s team engineered a floating installation methodology for the secondary steel structures deploying specialised, project-specific tools. The huge 2,000-tonne, 110 m-long, TP-less foundations were installed by DEME’s newest DP3 vessel, Orion.

Successful partnerships

For this groundbreaking offshore wind farm, DEME selected Energomontaż-Północ Gdynia S.A. Poland (EPG) for the fabrication of all the secondary steel components and the transition piece of the offshore substation. With the secondary steel structures successfully installed, Parkwind’s Arcadis Ost 1 offshore wind farm moves to the next phase of its development – the cable installation and burial.

Eric Antoons, Co-CEO Parkwind, commented, “We are eager to witness the successful completion of yet another key milestone in the development of our most advanced wind farm to date. With all our foundations ready, we are reaching the final development phase of Parkwind’s first offshore wind farm outside Belgium. This new milestone is a testimony to our ability to execute a high-end project in difficult conditions, with our team and partners.”

Mathieu Holvoet, project director DEME Offshore, emphasises, “We are thrilled to see another project successfully being completed, allowing our client Parkwind to continue within the anticipated timeframe, which will soon see the turbines placed on top of our foundations. This project has been a real technical and engineering challenge given the unusual soil conditions, amongst other. With this latest installation completed, we can demonstrate that we are masters of offshore foundation installation utilising jack-ups, but also with pioneering floating installation methods. DEME is always ready to take up a new challenge.”