Van Oord selects Port of Blyth as Sofia cable base

Van Oord has selected the Port of Blyth as the location for the storage and mobilisation of inter-array cables for the 1.4 GW Sofia offshore wind farm in the UK.

The installation of the inter-array cables is set to begin in 2024, in which 350 kilometres of cable will pass through the Port’s Battleship Wharf Terminal into quayside storage tanks, prior to installation by Van Oord’s cable-laying vessel Nexus.

The Sofia offshore wind farm is located on DOgger Bank in the central North Sea, 195 kilometres off the North East coast of the UK.

In May, Van Oord contracted Peritus International to perform a study on inter-array stability for RWE’s offshore wind project.

Van Oord is the EPCI contractor for the inter-array cables and monopile foundations for the Sofia offshore wind project under a contract won at the beginning of 2021.

At the beginning of this year, the Dutch company picked Hellenic Cables for the supply of 66 kV inter-array cables and accessories for the offshore wind farm.

The export cable will be delivered by Prysmian.

The project will feature 100 SG 14-222 DD wind turbines scheduled to be fully commissioned in 2026. Once constructed, the Sofia offshore wind farm will generate enough green power to supply the equivalent of around 1.2 million homes.

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