German utility RWE has appointed ocean services provider DeepOcean as the preferred supplier of subsea installation services for the Nordseecluster A offshore wind development.
The Nordseecluster combines four wind farm sites in the eastern part of the German North Sea into a 1.6 GW project, consisting of a minimum of 104 wind turbines.
In early 2029, once all four wind farms are in operation, the wind turbines will be able to produce enough green electricity each year to supply 1.6 million German households.
The Nordseecluster will be constructed in two phases. The two wind farms of Nordseecluster A with a combined capacity of 660 MW are currently in the permit application phase. Two further wind farms of the second phase or Nordseecluster B will add 900 MW of capacity.
Under the agreement, DeepOcean will take charge of preparatory work, transportation, and installations of all inter-array cables, including trenching, topside pull-ins and terminations for the initial build-out phase. The value of the contract was left undisclosed which is subject to final investment decisions by RWE.
In total, 185 kilometres of 66kV aluminium and copper cables will be installed, starting with connecting all 44 offshore wind turbines of Nordseecluster A.
DeepOcean’s scope of work includes project management and engineering, offshore preparation work including pre-installation cable route survey, route engineering and burial assessment, offshore trenching, boulder relocation, foundation preparatory work and offshore substation preparatory work, transport and installation of inter-array cables including burial, pull-in, monitoring and testing as well as seabed surveys and monitoring.
DeepOcean will also provide three vessels – an installation vessel, trenching vessel, and a walk-to-work vessel. The offshore installation work for Nordseecluster A is likely to be executed in 2026.
