News from the UK’s offshore wind sector as an offshore substation has been completed for SSE Renewables’ Dogger Bank C, and Orsted has awarded £100,000 funding as part of the community benefit fund for the Hornsea 3 offshore wind development.
SSE Renewables has completed installation of a HVDC offshore substation at its Dogger Bank C offshore wind power plant.
It marks completion of three substations associated with the 3.6GW Dogger Bank offshore wind development, which is the largest offshore wind plant under construction globally. It is being developed in three phases, A, B and C, each with a generation capacity of 1.2GW, in a joint venture between SSE Renewables, Equinor and Vårgrønn.
The substation for Dogger Bank C was manufactured and supplied by Aibel and installed by the Sleipnir vessel owned by Hereema Marine Contractors. Aibel supplied its platform for all phases of the Dogger Bank plant and it was the first unmanned HVDC platform to be installed, in 2023.
The substations are operated from the shore and accessed only by a service operations vessel. Each of the three platforms will have capacity to receive 1.2GW of AC power generated by the respective part of Dogger Bank, which the substations will convert to DC and send to onshore convertor stations.
SSE Renewables is lead operator for the development and construction of Dogger Bank Wind Farm. Equinor will be lead operator of the wind farm on completion for its expected operational life of around 35 years. Vårgrønn provides specialist offshore wind expertise to the project.
Hornsea 3 pays ‘Legacy Fund’
Orsted has awarded its first Legacy Fund grant of £100,000 to North Norfolk District Council to cover the cost of establishing an eco-learning hub in the area.
The 2.9GW Hornsea 3 offshore wind power plant received a development consent order (DCO) in 2020 and will distribute £7 million over ten years as its community benefit fund. As part of this, the fund awards £700,000 annually, allocating £100,000 each year to a single Legacy Project that will deliver long term benefit.
Imran Nawaz, Ørsted’s senior advisor & community benefit fund manager, explained: “We were truly inspired by North Norfolk District Council’s vision for an eco-learning hub at Holt Country Park, a space that is already much-loved by local residents and visitors.”
The UK government is currently considering a proposal to make the provision of a community benefit fund a legal requirement for developers building onshore and offshore wind and solar PV. Locals would decide where the investment would go, and plans would also set out how communities could own a stake in the renewable energy infrastructure they host through shared ownership.
