Siemens has awarded 3sun Group with a contract for pre-assembly of 56 turbine towers for the Galloper offshore wind farm at Great Yarmouth’s port. The contract means 40 new jobs for 3sun, on top of the 100 new technicians it is currently recruiting.
Hervé Bouraima , Global Commodity Manager, Siemens Strategic Procurement, said: “When awarding our contracts, local content is a priority as well as UK content. 3sun Group is a highly regarded experienced local company with the skills and personnel for this work.”
Works will start early next month.
Key turbine components will arrive at the newly-developed quayside in Great Yarmouth, where they will be assembled before they are loaded onto vessels and transported offshore for installation about 20 miles off the Suffolk coast.
A new 120m ALE Heavy lift SXL850 quayside crane at the North Terminal will lift parts of SWT-6.0-154 Wind Turbine Generators and assembled towers on and off vessels.
Offshore installation of the fifty-six 6MW Siemens turbines is expected to start in the early summer.
3sun Group Chief Executive Graham Hacon said: “We work on offshore wind farms all over the world but it is especially important to win contracts on wind farms off our coast to provide employment for our local community in this new growing industry. This was a vision when offshore wind began off the East of England, bringing hope for skills and employment as more traditional industries waned.
“With this contract, people can see that the multi-billion offshore wind industry isn’t just happening miles out at sea –the positive effects are being felt here in Great Yarmouth.”
Development and construction of the GBP 1.5 billion Galloper offshore wind farm is led by innogy SE on behalf of the project partners, UK Green Investment Bank (GIB), Siemens Financial Services and Macquarie Capital.