The 3.6GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm, which is being delivered in the North Sea, has signed a contract with what is considered to be the ‘world’s largest’ and ultra-clean offshore jack-up installation vessel.
The Voltaire ship is 325 metres tall when has its legs fully extended and its crane at full height, higher than the Eiffel tower.
This will be the first assignment for the #worldslargest #offshorewind jack-up vessel, Voltaire. 325m tall when fully extended, it will be taller than the #eiffeltower – & its ultra #cleanemissions mean Voltaire will be comparable to the most modern trucks and buses on the road! pic.twitter.com/XmzBTahQGy
— SSE Renewables (@sserenewables) August 7, 2020
Currently, under construction, the Voltaire will start operations in 2022 and will have a lifting capacity of more than 3,000 tonnes.
The Voltaire, which in 2023 will start installing wind turbines at Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B, located 130 kilometres off the Yorkshire coast, will also be fitted with an advanced exhaust filtering system, making it ‘the first’ installation vessel of its kind to be an Ultra-Low Emission vessel (ULEv).
This means the Voltaire will achieve emission standards comparable to the most modern trucks and buses now on the road.
Halfdan Brustad, Vice President for Dogger Bank at Equinor, said: “Innovation across all levels of the supply chain has enabled offshore wind projects to grow in size whilst reducing costs, and this has been a large factor in the growing success of offshore wind.”
When complete, Dogger Bank, which is a joint venture between SSE Renewables and Equinor, is estimated to generate enough energy to power more than 4.5 million homes every year – around 5% of the UK’s electricity needs.
