Iberdrola has just closed the last key contract for the Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm (476 MW), the second major offshore wind project that the company is developing in the Baltic Sea (Germany), with the award of the manufacture of the foundations, which it has commissioned the Asturian Windar and the German EEW SPC.
Windar, in particular, will manufacture 50 transition pieces, which connect the wind turbine towers to the foundations, while the German company will build the 50 monopiles that will support the wind turbines.
With this new award, Windar – owned by the Daniel Alonso group and Siemens Gamesa – improves its positioning for a future IPO for what it already has with Rotschild, Garrigues, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Merril Lynch.
The main actions for the construction of the transition pieces will be carried out at the Windar facilities, in Avilés. Some 30 suppliers of the Asturian company in northern Spain will participate in its manufacturing process, among which are steel production companies, components, equipment, tests and auxiliary machinery.
The contract will generate 800 jobs, based on 1.3 million hours of work. The start of manufacturing is scheduled for October and the works will last until December 2022, with its loading to Germany scheduled for early 2023.
This contract is in addition to the framework agreement reached a few weeks ago between Iberdrola and Navantia-Windar for the manufacture and supply of 130 XXL monopiles, as well as the rest of the actions of the Asturian manufacturer in Iberdrola’s offshore wind projects in operation in Germany (Winkinger) and the United Kingdom (East Anglia One) and those developed by the energy company in France (Saint Brieuc) and the United States (Vineyard Wind I).
At EEW’s mega-factory in Rostock, located next to the Baltic Sea, the monopiles will be built, with a diameter of between 9 and 8.75 meters, a length of between 75 and 90 meters and a maximum weight of foundations of up to 1,402 tonnes. . These components will be built between January 2022 and January 2023 and loading is expected to begin in April 2023.
With a capacity of 476 MW, Baltic Eagle will supply renewable energy to 475,000 homes and avoid almost one million tons of CO2 emissions per year. The offshore wind farm will be fully operational by the end of 2024.
Iris Stempfle, Iberdrola’s country manager in Germany, explained that “companies with experience in offshore wind installations in five European countries will participate in its construction. We are very satisfied that Iberdrola’s investments contribute to the energy transition in Europe and to its socio-economic recovery.
In addition to the notable job creation during its construction, we plan to increase the number of professionals for operation and maintenance work in the port of Sassnitz-Mukran, on the island of Rügen, with the aim of providing service to our offshore wind hub in the Baltic Sea. “
