SeAH Wind Goes On Recruitment Spree For UK Monopile Factory
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
South Korea’s SeAH Wind has started its large-scale drive to recruit for positions including welders, platers, roll bending machine operatives, mechanical and electrical technicians, supervisors, and general operatives for its XXL monopile manufacturing facility on Teesworks, the UK.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Applications will be accepted via the company’s dedicated recruitment website where individuals can sign up for job alerts, register their expressions of interest, and apply directly for jobs.
SeAH Wind will hold events across multiple Teesside towns, including Middlesbrough, Redcar, Cleveland, and Hartlepool over the coming months where more details will be shared about vacancies and training opportunities at the South Bank site.
These three paragraphs talk about the education and training, and the number of jobs.
As part of the recruitment drive, the South Korean firm has also joined forces with Nordic Products and Services and Middlesbrough College to create two programmes under its SeAH Wind Academy programme.
During the 24-week training and development programme, 30 people will be trained to become welders for SeAH Wind.
Once fully operational, it is expected that a total of 750 direct jobs and 1,500 further supply chain jobs are set to come from the SeAH manufacturing facility.
I suspect, this the sort of investment that Teesside needs and will welcome.
German Company To Build XXL Monopile Factory in Denmark
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
German-based Baltic Structures Company (BSC) has revealed that it will build an XXL monopile production factory in Esbjerg, Denmark
These are the first three paragraphs that outline the project.
BSC will build “Europe’s biggest” foundation fabrication site in the Esbjerg Port where it will be able to offer various foundations structures with a more than 100,000-square-metre production area under the roof and an output of up to 200 XXL monopiles per year.
The German company said that the focus of the plant is on structures with dimensions of up to 15 metres in diameter, up to 130 metres in length, and single unit weights of up to 4,000 tonnes.
In addition to monopiles, transition pieces, pin piles, and components for jackets, floating foundations will also be offered, said BSC.
These last three paragraphs sum up, where we are at the moment with European wind turbine foundation manufacture.
In September 2022, Esbjerg Port (Denmark), Oostende Port (Belgium), Groningen Seaports/Eemshaven (the Netherlands), Niedersachsen Port/Cuxhaven (Germany), Nantes-Saint Nazaire Port (France), and Humber (the UK) signed a partnership agreement with an aim to minimise capacity issues.
At the beginning of this year, the six largest European wind ports also signed a mutual declaration to collaborate on an operational and practical level to help bring the new offshore wind capacities across Europe as smoothly as possible.
In January, the Port of Esbjerg, together with US-based Moffatt & Nichol, deployed digital twin technology which could triple the port’s offshore wind capacity.
I also wrote UK And South Korea Help Secure Millions For World’s Largest Monopile Factory, this morning about a new monopole factory on Teesside.
- The Teesside factory is described as the world’s largest.
- On the other hand the Esbjerg Port facility is described as Europe’s biggest foundation fabrication site.
I suspect the Germans and the Koreans are using different engineering dictionaries.
European Offshore Wind Power Targets
Out of curiosity, I looked up the offshore wind capacity, the UK and neighbouring countries are planning before 2030.
- UK – 50 GW
- Germany – 30 GW
- Norway – 30 GW
- The Netherlands – 21 GW
- France – 18 GW
- Denmark – 13 GW
- Italy – 10 GW
- Portugal – 10 GW
- Belgium – 5.4-5.8 GW
- Republic of Ireland – 5 GW
- Spain – 3 GW
Note.
- Norway’s figure relates to 2040.
- Northern Ireland have a target of 1 GW, which I assume is included in the UK total.
- The total is between 195.4 and 195.8 GW.
Given that we could be producing over a quarter of Western Europe’s offshore wind power, the Gods of the Winds must have been British.
The Next Generation Of Fixed Foundation Wind Farms
This article on offshoreWIND.biz, is entitled Offshore Wind Turbines In 2022: 15 MW Prototypes Starting To Spin In Europe, Chinese Rolling Out 16 MW Models, Windcatcher And VAWTs Secure Demo Projects.
The title itself, shows 15-16 MW wind turbines and the text lists three European 15 MW and two Chinese 16 MW wind turbines, that are being developed.
This paragraph also indicates that Siemens Gamesa are in the running for orders.
So far, the SG 14-236 DD wind turbine has been selected as a preferred option for the Norfolk Vanguard and Boreas wind farms offshore the UK, as well as for the MFW Bałtyk II and MFW Bałtyk III wind farms in the Polish Baltic Sea.
Large turbines with a capacity of 15 MW and upwards appear to be becoming the new normal.
Water depths for these large turbines are forecast to be deeper than the two Norfolk wind-farms, which are between 22 and 40 metres.
This means that foundations will get much larger and heavier.
This article on offshoreWIND.biz, is entitled New Monopile Installation Method Attracts Major Backer, describes a new generation of monopiles as 100-130 metres in length, 12-15 metres in outer diameter, and a weight of up to 5,000 tonnes.
Installing these long and heavy objects safely in deep waters, is not a job for the faint-hearted.
The article describes a new method of installation, which I feel is very elegant.
- The XXXL monopiles are built horizontally.
- They are moved on to the jack-up ship by self-propelled modular transporters (SPMT).
- It appears at least two or possibly up to four monopiles can be carried on the ship.
- They are lifted into the vertical position by a lifting beam.
Note.
- No cranes are involved in the process.
- The lifting beam method of erecting the 5,000 tonne XXXL monopile is simple and very efficient.
- Self-propelled modular transporters were used to install the 2000 tonne subway at Hackney Wick station.
- Rollers are fitted on the ship to ease handling of the monopiles.
I can certainly see this specialised jack-up ship speeding up the installation of these giant monopiles.
Consequences For Floating Wind
I do wonder, if this method of installing fixed foundation wind farms, will allow larger foundations and these may mean that there is less need for the more complex floating wind farms.
DEME Returns To Scotland, Announces Offshore Wind Industry Firsts
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
DEME has won the contract to install foundations at the 882 MW Moray West wind farm offshore Scotland.
The industry firsts are described in these paragraphs.
In an industry breakthrough, the Moray West project will be the first time XXL monopiles will be installed in the winter period, and DEME will deploy its double-staged, motion-compensated pile gripper, the company said.
Moray West will also be the first time a vibro-hammer is being utilised for the XXL monopiles to overcome weaker soil layers.
Note.
- The water depth at Moray West wind farm is 35-54 metres, which necessitates the XXL monopiles.
- Working offshore in winter can be challenging.
- DEME’s gripper sounds just like what the engineers wanted.
This is just like with North sea oil and gas, where everything got bigger and more capable over time. But it did speed construction!
Ørsted Signs Two ‘Industry First’ Monopile Contracts For Hornsea 3 Foundations
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Ørsted.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Ørsted, the world’s most sustainable energy company, has signed two ‘industry first’ contracts for the fabrication of XXL monopile foundations for the Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm.
I have a few thoughts about the press release.
XXL Monopile Foundations
These four paragraphs describe Hornsea 3’s XXL monopile foundations.
Subject to Ørsted taking a Final Investment Decision on Hornsea 3, the contracts have been finalised with Haizea Wind Group, through its subsidiary Haizea Bilbao, and SeAH Wind Limited, a UK-based subsidiary of SeAH Steel Holdings (SeAH).
Ørsted will be the first major customer at SeAH Wind’s new monopile facility in Teesside, and the agreement with Haizea marks the company’s first XXL monopile contract with Ørsted.
The deal with SeAH represents the single largest offshore wind foundations contract secured by any UK company. Haizea’s agreement is the largest single contract ever secured by Haizea Wind Group.
Each of the huge foundation structures for Hornsea 3 will weigh between 1,300 and 2,400 tonnes and measure in at between 83 and 111 metres in length. Monopile production is expected to start in 2024.
Note
- These are huge steel structures.
- But then the water depth appears to be between 36 and 73 metres.
- It looks like the orders are shared between Spanish and Korean companies
This article on offshoreWIND.biz, is entitled Beyond XXL – Slim Monopiles For Deep-Water Wind Farms.
These are some points from the article.
- XXL-Monopiles have been successfully used for water depths of up to 40 metres. Now wind farm developers need monopiles “beyond XXL”.
- The extension of the range is needed, mainly to enable the use of larger turbines, deeper water, and harsher environmental situations.
- These monopiles will allow turbines of up to 15 megawatts with rotor diameters of up to 230 metres.
- This monopile design automatically induces the idea of design and fabrication optimisation to ensure that monopiles continue to lead the ranking of most economical foundation systems.
In the 1970s, I was involved with a Cambridge University spin-out company called Balaena Structures, who were using similar much larger structures to support oil and gas production platforms.
I was just doing calculations, but I do wonder if these XXL monopile foundations, owe things in their design to work done by structural engineers, like those I met at Cambridge fifty years ago.
The Anonymous Widower 