VBMS wins cable contract for 700-MW offshore-wind connections

Boskalis announced that its subsidiary VBMS, in consortium with nkt cables has been awarded the Borssele Alpha contract by TenneT for the installation of two export cables that will connect the Borssele offshore wind farms 1 and 2 to TenneT’s onshore grid in the Netherlands.

The contract value of Boskalis’ share is approximately EUR 70 million. Separately, the option has been awarded for the installation of the export cables that will connect the Borssele offshore wind farms 3 and 4 to the Dutch onshore grid (Borssele Beta), subject to financial close.

The grid connection of the Borssele offshore wind area in the North Sea consists of two 700 MW connections, called Alpha (for Borssele 1 and 2) and Beta (for Borssele 3 and 4). The contract for the Alpha export cabling scope entails the supply and installation of two 61 kilometer-long export cables. The cables will be routed via the Western Skeldt estuary and will come ashore near the existing high-voltage substation at Borssele, the Netherlands.

To execute the project in a safe and efficient manner, Boskalis has taken full advantage of the expertise and capabilities within the group. To minimize maintenance to the cables during their operational lifetime, Boskalis will pre-sweep and dredge the shallow parts of the route, which will enable VBMS to simultaneously lay and bury the export cables at the required depth. The project is scheduled to be carried out in the period 2018 to 2019.

Boskalis’ strategy is aimed at benefitting from key macro-economic factors, which drive worldwide demand in our markets: expansion of the global economy, increase in energy consumption, global population growth, and the challenges that go hand in hand with climate change.

This project is closely related to the development of generating renewable energy due to climate change and increasing energy consumption.