First wind turbine installed in US federal waters

Jan De Nul’s jack-up vessel Vole au vent has installed the first of two turbines at the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) pilot project in the US.

The Siemens Gamesa SWT-6.0-154 unit is the first wind turbine installed in U.S. federal waters.

According to Dominion Energy, the installation of the project’s second turbine is on track for this week.

The monopile foundations were installed at the end of May.

The 12 MW CVOW demonstration project, located some 43km off the coast of Virginia Beach, is being developed jointly by Ørsted and Dominion Energy.

The two turbines are expected to provide the operational, weather, and environmental experience needed for the 2.6 GW development in the adjacent 112,800-hectare lease site, expected to be operational by 2026.