Port of Blyth announces contract with Van Oord to support one of the largest single offshore wind farms

The Port of Blyth has been selected by Stokesley (North Yorkshire) based Van Oord Offshore Wind UK Limited as the location for the storage and mobilisation of inter-array cable for the Sofia Offshore Wind Farm.

With the commencement of the inter-array cable installation in 2024, the Port of Blyth will be the cable base for one of the world’s largest single offshore wind farms.

In total, approximately 350 kilometres of inter-array cable will pass through the Port’s Battleship Wharf Terminal into quayside storage tanks, designed and built by their in-house technical team, prior to installation by Van Oord’s cable-laying vessel Nexus.

Martin Lawlor, chief executive of Port of Blyth, said: “We are delighted to have been selected by Van Oord and look forward to working together with them on this project. We are proud to be supporting the installation of some of the UK’s most significant offshore wind farms as one of the UK’s leading offshore energy hubs. It is also rewarding to be further facilitating the energy transition in the UK.”

The 1.4GW Sofia Offshore Wind Farm project is located on Dogger Bank in the central North Sea, 195km off the North East coast of the UK. The RWE project represents a more than £3 billion investment in the UK’s energy infrastructure industry and once constructed will generate enough green power to supply the equivalent of around 1.2 million homes.

Roy Van Loveren, area manager for the UK and Ireland for Van Oord Offshore Wind, said: “This flagship EPCI (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation) project requires an experienced offshore wind support base for our cables.

“Having handled thousands of components for both onshore and offshore wind farm developments, it is safe to say that the Port of Blyth is the ideal partner. Being a regional partner, we look forward to working together with the port as we progress into the construction phase of this exciting project.”

The Port of Blyth’s strategic mid North Sea location ensures it is well placed for use as a mobilisation base for wind farms down the UK’s east coast. The combination of the Port’s long track record in the wind sector with its mature on-site supply chain and significant land development opportunities make it a highly attractive proposition for expanding companies in the wind sector.

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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