Sailaway of the BorWin5 HVDC Platform
The offshore HVDC converter station of the BorWin5 grid connection system, including topsides and jacket, has departed from the Dragados Yard in Puerto Real and is en route to its final location in the North Sea.
The platform is successfully completed and is now on board the transport barge “Iron Lady”. First it will make a short stop in the Dutch port of Rotterdam, where it will be transferred to the world’s largest installation vessel, the “Pioneering Spirit” from the company Allseas. After the transfer of both jacket and topsides, it will continue its voyage on board the “Pioneering Spirit” to the installation site in the German North Sea.
Dimensions: 76m wide, 34m deep, and 48m high. The supporting jacket adds another 65m, with 38m submerged underwater. Combined, that’s a towering 113 metres – about the height of Big Ben in London.
The total transport time is expected to take approximately two weeks and the installation offshore another two weeks. Once installed, the activities of offshore hook-up, cable connections and final commissioning and start-up of the platform will be performed before final handover to the client, TenneT.
Dragados Offshore is responsible for the design, supply, construction, transportation and installation of the platform and the jacket, executed in partnership with Siemens Energy, who is responsible for the design and supply of the HVDC equipment of the platform together with the development of the connecting onshore station. The platform has a total converter capacity of 900 MW and has a weight of approximately 12.000 tons.
After the trial operation, commissioning is planned for the end of 2025. Over 1 million households can then be supplied with green electricity.
