Heavy Lifter Svanen Contracted for Monopile Installations

Dutch builder Ballast Nedam has contracted with A2Sea for the use of the Svanen, a heavy lift vessel, for the installation of foundations for DONG Energy's Anholt offshore wind farm in Denmark. The contractor who will supply and install the foundations has not yet been selected by DONG Energy, according to a company statement.

The wind farm will consist of 111 turbines, each with a capacity of 3.6 megawatts. The Svanen will begin operations at the end of 2011 and finish during the third quarter of 2012.

Ballast Nedam has also contracted with Walney Offshore Windfarms, a joint venture between DONG Energy and Scottish and Southern Energy, to install monopoles using the same vessel at the U.K.'s Walney II offshore wind farm during the second quarter of 2011. The monopiles, weighing from 800 to 1,000 metric tons each, will be the heaviest ever installed at an offshore wind farm, according to Ballast Nedam.