Hollandse Kust Zuid wind farm, the world’s first wind farm, has begun to generate electricity. The offshore wind farm is located about 18-35km off the coast of the Netherlands in the North Sea. Although it is still in the testing phase, it now feeds electricity into Dutch’s electricity grid.
The wind farm construction kicked off in the summer of 2021. It will consist of 140 11MW turbines, the largest to be installed on one scale in history. These turbines will have a large rotor diameter of 200m and a total height of 225m(measuring from sea level to the blade tip). Cadeler’s wind farm Installation Vessel (WIV) Wind Osprey transported the first set of turbines from the Port of Rotterdam to the wind farm in April.
Last week, Vattenfall announced that 36 of the 140 turbines have been installed at Hollandse Kust Zuid. The final turbines will be installed in the second quarter of 2023, followed by commissioning. Turbines with a rotor diameter like this allow for more coverage, capturing more wind and producing more electricity. Hollandse wind farm is expected to suffice for the electricity consumption of approximately 1.5million Dutch households, with a total capacity of 1,500 MW.
‘We are immensely proud to reach this milestone. The delivery of power to the Dutch grid is an important moment, not just for us but also for all our partners, suppliers, contractors, and all other parties who helped us get to this point,’ says Ian Bremner, project director at Hollandse Kust Zuid.
‘With Hollandse Kust Zuid, we are working on the largest and first subsidy-free offshore wind farm worldwide. It is wonderful to see our energization and first power plan come to fruition, and we look forward to completing the wind farm in 2023.‘
Vattenfall, BASF and Allianz jointly own the Hollandse Kust Zuid wind farm. Vattenfall is a Swedish power company that has been for over a century. With about 19,000 employees, it has supplied energy and innovative technology to homes and industries. The goal is to enable a fossil-free environment within this generation.
Vattenfall bid to build all four allotments in the Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind zone and won the right in 2018 and 2019. Winning the bid made it subsidy-free, with no need for government financial assistance.
‘Winning the bid for Hollandse Kust Zuid is a result of our continuous cost reduction efforts along our entire value chain, the solid track record and portfolio approach of our company,’ said Gunnar Groebler, senior vice president of business area wind at Vattenfall in 2018.
Vattenfall’s commitment to clean energy has seen the build of several large wind farms. One of which is the Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm. This wind farm is Denmark’s and Scandinavia’s largest offshore wind farm, with a capacity of 604MW.
Also, Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm, Blakliden Fäbodberget, produces electricity of about 1 billion kWh annually. It went into commercial production in spring 2022, powering approximately 220,000 Swedish homes. The renewable energy source promises a low carbon emission of about 8g per kWh over the next 30 years.
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