RWE chooses HVDC suppliers for UK offshore wind project

RWE has chosen a consortium of GE Renewable Energy’s Grid Solutions and Sembcorp Marine as preferred suppliers for the 1.4 gigawatt (GW) Sofia offshore wind farm project’s high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system.

The offshore wind farm project is located on Dogger Bank in the shallow area of the central North Sea, 195 kilometres from the UK coast’s nearest point.

GE’s Grid Solutions and Sembcorp Marine are starting early design works in July, with the full contract subject to the project’s final investment decision, due in the first quarter of 2021.

Sven Utermöhlen, chief operating officer Wind Offshore Global of RWE Renewables, said: “We are keen to support the growth of both onshore and offshore wind energy in UK, one of our core markets in Europe. The choice of GE’s Grid Solutions and Sembcorp Marine for the supply of the electrical system is an important statement of our commitment to grow our renewables portfolio in the UK and reflects our ambition to strive for continuous innovation in the development, construction and operation of our offshore wind farms.”

As the consortium leader, GE’s Grid Solutions will be responsible for the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of two HVDC converter stations capable of transmitting 1,400 megawatts (MW) of power at 320 kilovolts (kV). Innovative converter modules and a new high-tech control system have been deployed for Sofia.

It will be the most powerful offshore converter station ever fabricated and will be installed at a point 220 kilometres from shore, so will also be the most remote.

The offshore converter platform will be built and installed by Sembcorp Marine. At the heart of the wind farm, it will comprise a 10,000 tonnes topside attached to a jacket foundation piled into the seabed. The onshore converter station will convert the electricity generated by the wind farm to 400 kV, before it enters the national grid.

Construction of the wind farm is due to begin onshore at its Teesside converter station site early next year, with offshore construction expected to get underway in