On Saturday, May 4, 2013, The Andrie Jack-Up Barge arrived on the shores of Lake Erie, a beautiful visual on a sunny spring day.
The Lake Erie Development Corporation (LEEDCo) will be using the 90-foot jack-up barge to perform soil borings and thorough geophysical analyses of the lake bed at the future sight of Icebreaker, America’s first freshwater offshore wind project. On Saturday afternoon, the LEEDCo team will be loading a drill onto the barge, which will then head 7 miles out into Lake Erie, where LEEDCo plans to erect five to nine 3MW wind turbines in 2016. LEEDCo will use the borings to complete a soil profile of the lake bed in order to tailor project construction plans to the Lake Erie environment
LEEDCo has already received a critical round of investment and is competing with six other offshore wind projects for additional federal investment. This geotechnical work represents a significant milestone for Icebreaker and will help the project stand out against its competition. The barge is scheduled to arrive at the Port of Cleveland on Saturday morning and will be performing work on the lake for approximately one week.
[mappress]
Press release, May 7, 2013; Image: spqrpublicrelations