VolkerInfra Gets In On Hornsea 2 Action

Lancashire-based VolkerInfra has signed a multi-million-pound contract with Ørsted to install 360 kilometres of high voltage onshore cables for the 1,4GW Hornsea 2 offshore wind farm.

VolkerInfra will install three 220kV circuits along the 39km onshore cable route for Hornsea 2, which runs from Horseshoe Point in east of Tetney to the substation site in North Killingholme.

Hornsea 2 is in the early stages of construction and when complete in 2022 will be the biggest offshore wind farm in the world. The wind farm is located 89 kilometres off the Yorkshire Coast and will comprise 165 Siemens Gamesa 8MW turbines.

Duncan Clark, Programme Director for Hornsea 1 and 2 said: “The UK already leads the world in offshore wind capacity, and we are building the biggest offshore wind farms in the world here. Importantly, and especially following last week’s IPCC report, these projects will contribute significantly to reducing the UK’s carbon emissions, and they are also providing huge opportunities for UK businesses.”

Ørsted, constructing the offshore wind farm, has placed significant contracts with UK companies including Balfour Beatty for the onshore substation, and major components including the inter-array cables and 81m turbine blades will also be manufactured in the UK.

“We want to see as many UK companies as possible involved, whether they are already supplying offshore wind or growing their business in new markets, so we’re delighted to award this multi million-pound contract to VolkerInfra, who we have worked with before on UK projects,” Clark said.

As part of its efforts to encourage UK suppliers to get involved in Hornsea 2, Ørsted has organised a supply chain event on 14 November at Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham. VolkerInfra, and other tier-one suppliers, will join the Hornsea 2 project team at the event, which is open to suppliers from all over the UK, to maximise the number of UK companies at all levels of the supply chain.

Peter Clusky, Hornsea 2 supply chain development manager, said: “In the past five years alone, Ørsted has placed major contracts directly with nearly 100 different UK companies to help build and maintain our offshore wind farms. The majority of these contracts have a value of over £1 million and more than 75% of these companies have received multiple contracts.”