Member Article

Delivery of 80 miles of cabling at Dogger Bank Wind Farm starts

A key milestone has been reached on the first phases of the world’s largest offshore wind farm, with deliveries of the electrical cabling for the onshore portion of the works commencing. In total, there will be approximately 80 miles of cabling installed by civil engineering contractor Jones Bros Civil Engineering UK for the first two phases of the Dogger Bank Wind Farm. Dogger Bank Wind Farm, which is to be built more than 130km off the Yorkshire coast in the North Sea, is currently being developed in three 1.2GW phases: Dogger Bank A, B and C. Dogger Bank A and B is a joint venture between SSE Renewables (40 per cent), Equinor (40 per cent) and Eni (20 per cent), while Dogger Bank C is a 50:50 joint venture between SSE Renewables and Equinor. Deliveries will take place every fortnight, with 82 cable drums to be transported to the site over the course of the scheme. Each drum weighs 41 tonnes, with the combined weight (3,362 tonnes) heavier than Wimbledon’s Centre Court roof (3,000 tonnes). Bristol-based high voltage electrical engineering specialists Powersystems will support the Jones Bros team during the installation of the cables. Jones Bros project manager James Lockwood said: “The arrival of the cable drums marks a significant point in our works on the grid connection and land-based infrastructure. “The site team have done a fantastic job over the past four months to allow for deliveries of the cables to start on time and on programme. “The 80 miles of cabling will be used along a 20 mile route to help connect the offshore wind farm to the national grid, and we remain committed to minimising disruption in the local area as we carry out this work.” Onshore project manager for Dogger Bank Wind Farm, Oliver Flattery, said: “The Jones Bros team has worked hard since the start of 2020 to safely and efficiently prepare the ground in East Riding, in readiness for more than 3,000 tonnes of cables to be installed from July onwards. “We thank local residents and businesses for their patience over the last 18 months, and continue to focus on operating safely and with minimal disruption as we progress our work with the installation of the cables that will transmit renewable energy to millions of UK homes.” Established in the 1950s, Jones Bros’ leadership team consists of members of the second and third generations of the founding family. It employs more than 500 people. The company is currently working on contracts in various sectors including highways, flood and marine defence, waste management and renewable energy around the UK. The company runs an award-winning apprenticeship scheme, which has produced more than 40 per cent of its current workforce, with many of its senior managers having started out as apprentices or in a trainee role. It has recruited more than 100 apprentices during the past three years.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sam Harris .