Member Article

How Blyth’s Offshore Demonstrator wind farm already boasts 'world firsts'

The development of Blyth’s Offshore Demonstrator wind farm is capturing national attention at present, with its innovative approach bringing previously unattempted build methods to the Northumberland coastline.

The first gravity-based foundation (GBF) has been installed onto the farm’s sea bed, the first time this specialist ‘float and submerge’ method has been used on an offshore wind project.

EDF Energy Renewables is currently building the five wind turbine project, with a total generating capacity of 41.5MW installed around 6.5km off the coast of Blyth. Once operational, they will generate enough low carbon electricity to power around 34,000 homes.

Designed and built by Royal BAM Group, the concrete and steel GBFs were constructed in the Neptune dry dock on the Tyne and floated down river to the Port of Tyne where extra ballast was added ahead of their tow out to the offshore site location using three standard tug vessels.

At the offshore site, Strukton is using a specialist vessel to pump sea water into the foundation as ballast to lower it to the prepared sea bed.

Once located correctly in place, the water ballast is replaced with a sand ballast to enable the foundation to rest securely on the sea bed to provide the support structures that act as the foundations for the installation of the wind turbines.

EDF Energy Renewables CEO, Matthieu Hue said: “We are delighted to have reached another successful milestone in this ground-breaking project.

“As well as playing an important role in the generation of low carbon electricity, the Blyth scheme is playing a fundamental role in the in the investigation and testing of new and emerging offshore wind farm installation methods and technologies.

“As a result, this has been a complex and highly innovative project, but to have successfully reached this latest important stage is very satisfying and work will now progress towards completion of the project in the coming months.”