Pioneering Spirit installing a high-voltage convertor platform for the Saint-Nazaire offshore wind farm development in the Bay of Biscay. Photo courtesy Allseas
Offshore contractor Allseas has been awarded a contract to install the offshore substation for the Yeu and Noirmoutier islands’ offshore wind farm development off the coast of Pays-de-la-Loire in France.
The substation jacket and topside will be installed by Allseas’ groundbreaking installation vessel Pioneering Spirit in the first half of 2024. This will mark Allseas’ second major offshore wind project in France. Allseas says the “lift and set down” operation will be very similar to the Saint-Nazaire installation job Pioneering Spirit performed for DEME in the Bay of Biscay in August 2021.
The offshore wind farm is being developed by Éoliennes en Mer des Îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier (EMYN), a consortium that includes Ocean Winds (an ENGIE and EDPR joint venture), Sumitomo Corporation, La Banque des Territoires and Vendée Energie.
DEME, the project’s main offshore contractor, has hired Allseas to execute the jacket and topside installation works. DEME will perform the installation of the pin piles for the substation foundations and transport the jacket and topside to the installation site.
The Pioneering Spirit will be used to install the substation using its 5000-tonne crane that will lift and set down the jacket and topside structures.
Designed for single-lift installation and removal of large oil and gas platforms, Pioneering Spirit is increasingly being used in the development of offshore wind energy projects for the installation of large transformer stations.
“Weather and tidal conditions at the installation location can be challenging, which we’re able to mitigate thanks to the unprecedented size and stability of our installation vessel,” says Allseas’ Matthijs Groenewegen, Vice President Projects. “We look forward to working closely with DEME to realise this important offshore wind development that will deliver clean energy to thousands of French households.”
The Yeu-Noirmoutier wind farm development is situated 16 km off the Atlantic Coast in waters are up to 36 m deep. Once completed, the offshore wind farm will have a total capacity of 496 MW, producing enough power to meet the annual electricity demands of 800,000 people.
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