Engineers have successfully installed the first offshore electrical infrastructure at Moray East, one of the largest offshore wind developments in Scotland.
The offshore substation platform (OSP) contains all of the technology required to transmit electricity generated by the wind turbines onshore.
It was installed on top of the three legged jacket substructure, which was previously fastened to the sea-bed.
The 1200 tonne top-side, which was loaded onboard from Global Energy’s facility at Nigg in the Highlands, includes all the electrical equipment needed to transmit the electricity generated by roughly a third of the 100 offshore turbines.
The substation will also increase its voltage from 66kV to 220kV so it can be delivered to shore with maximum efficiency and minimum loss.
In total, three OSPs will be installed within the next couple of weeks.
The electricity will come ashore at Inverboyndie, and will then be routed via underground cables to the Moray East substation at New Deer in Aberdeenshire where it will be fed into the National Grid.
The 950 MWe Moray Offshore Windfarm (East) is expected to be operational by 2022.
It will generate enough energy to power around 950,000 UK home, saving 1.4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually.
Marcel Sunier, project director, said: “The safe installation of our first offshore electrical infrastructure is a very significant milestone. A 1200 tonne precision-lift is a major undertaking in any situation – and even more so in the challenging waters of the Moray Firth, and I congratulate all those involved and I am looking forward to see the other two substation platforms being installed shortly.”
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