Van Oord has reached a halfway point on the installation of monopiles at the Windpark Fryslân nearshore wind farm in the IJsselmeer Lake, the Netherlands.
In total, the 382.7 MW Windpark Fryslân will comprise 89 Siemens Gamesa 4.3 MW wind turbines installed on monopile foundations and scheduled for commissioning in 2021.
Van Oord installed the first monopile at the site near Breezanddijk in early September and the final foundation is expected to stand in its place by January 2021.
The use of the standard offshore wind equipment to carry out the installation work was not possible due to the shallows in the IJsselmeer and the width of the locks.
Van Oord has therefore devised a special method to install the wind farm’s foundations – the so-called Sarens Soccer Pitch.
The unique work platform, the size of half a football field, houses a large crane with which the foundations are installed.
The work platform will also be used for the installation of the wind turbines, expected to start in March 2021.
Siemens Gamesa and Van Oord are constructing the wind farm through the Zuiderzeewind consortium on behalf of Ventolines.
Once fully commissioned in the summer of 2021, Windpark Fryslân will become the largest wind farm in the world installed in inland fresh water.