A 220kV export cable will connect Burbo Bank Extension’s offshore substation with Dong Energy’s onshore substation. From this landing point, between Rhyl and Prestatyn, VolkerInfra will be installing the underground onshore cable circuit.
The underground onshore cables will run for approximately 10km to a new onshore substation and will then be linked to the National Grid Bodelwyddan 400kV onshore substation, located south of the St Asaph Business Park, between St Asaph and Bodelwyddan in Denbighshire.
VolkerInfra will be using a combination of open cut trenching and horizontal directional drilling (HDD) methods to install the cables. To minimise disruption, the developer and contractor have committed to use the HDD method of installation on nearly all of the road crossings on the cable route corridor.
The onshore cable circuit will comprise three single core 220kV, 1000mm2 cables including fibre optic cables inserted into pre-installed power pipe. The 400kV circuit from the onshore substation to National Grid’s Bodelwyddan substation will comprise of three single 400kV, 630mm2 Al - 1000 mm2 XLPE cables including fibre optic.
The current Burbo Bank wind farm is located on the Burbo Flats in Liverpool Bay at the entrance to the River Mersey, approximately 6.4km from the Sefton coastline and 7.2km from North Wirral. The wind farm has 25 turbines to generate up to 90MW of electricity. The new Burbo Bank Extension wind farm, which will be constructed just west of the existing wind farm, will cover an area of 40km2 with an increased capacity of 258MW.
Enabling works for construction began in January 2015. Power is expected to start coming ashore in 2016.
Klaus Skoust Moller, senior director for Burbo Bank Extension at Dong Energy, said: "Burbo Bank Extension is an exciting project which will provide power to around 180,000 UK households, and we are delighted to appoint VolkerInfra to install the onshore underground cables for this wind farm. VolkerInfra has specialist expertise in this area, and is based near to the project in Preston. Dong Energy is committed to investing in the UK and building a strong UK supply chain, and it's great to have VolkerInfra working with us on Burbo Bank Extension."
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