Van Oord, DEME-CSBC JV to install Fengmiao 1 inter-array cables, foundations

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has contracted the Dutch offshore construction company Van Oord and the joint venture between Belgian offshore construction specialist DEME and Taiwan’s largest shipbuilder CSBC for installation work at the Fengmiao 1 offshore wind farm in Taiwan.

Van Oord’s contract covers the transport, installation and burial of the 33 inter-array cables, with a total length of approximately 64 kilometres. The company said on January 13 that it would deploy its cable-laying vessel (CLV) Nexus on the project and use a remote-controlled trencher to bury the cables, with the work scheduled to commence in 2027. 

The CSBC-DEME Wind Engineering (CDWE) joint venture first announced an agreement signed for foundation installation at Fengmiao 1 in June 2024.

On January 13, DEME published a press release saying the company, through CDWE joint, secured a contract for the transport and installation of 33 jacket foundations, their associated pin piles, and the offshore substation for the project, for which CDWE will use its the vessel Green Jade, starting in the first quarter of 2026.

DEME said its share of the contract was “substantial”, which at the company means a value between €150 million and €300 million.

The Fengmiao 1 offshore wind project, being developed by Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP) on behalf of CIP, is located 35 kilometers off the coast of Taichung where 33 offshore wind turbines, each with a capacity of 15 MW, will be installed.

Foundations for Fengmiao 1 are being manufactured by South Korean company SK oceanplant and the offshore substation is being constructed by the consortium established by Semco Maritime and PTSC Mechanical & Construction (PTSC M&C).

The news about offshore construction contracts comes shortly after CIP signed a corporate power purchase agreement (CPPA) with United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) in December 2024, which followed a CPPA CIP signed with Sino-American Silicon Products and its renewable energy subsidiary, Sustainable Energy Solution, in November 2024.

CIP was awarded capacity for the 500 MW Fengmiao 1 in the first round of Taiwan’s Round 3 Zonal Development Offshore Wind Auction in 2022. The Fengmiao project is planned to have a total installed capacity of 1.8 GW across all its phases.