Fugro and Gardline have been awarded a contract to carry out preliminary geotechnical investigations for the future offshore wind farms in the Danish North Sea, Kattegat, and Danish Baltic Sea.
The tender, which was published by the Danish transmission operator (TSO) Energinet, was divided into two lots.
UK marine survey specialist Gardline will perform preliminary geotechnical surveys in the Kattegat II, Hesselø South, Kriegers Flak II North, and Kriegers Flak II South areas.
Dutch geo-data specialist company, Fugro, was awarded a contract to carry out surveys in the North Sea I area.
In December last year, the Danish Energy Agency (DEA) issued permits to Energinet regarding the initiation of preliminary site investigations in the Kattegat II and Kriegers Flak II areas, as well as for the new location chosen for the Hesselø offshore wind farm.
A potential developer will be able to use the results of the preliminary site surveys for the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), according to DEA.
EIA for the Hesselø offshore wind farm will be carried out in 2025-2026 when the winner of the tender for the project has been appointed.
The offshore wind farm will have an installed capacity of between 800 MW and 1,200 MW and is expected to be fully operational by 2029, at the latest.
The offshore project site is located in Hesselø Bay, some 30 kilometres from the coast of North Zealand, 30 kilometres from Anholt, and around 35 kilometres offshore Djursland.
In September, Energinet gave the green light to carry out feasibility studies for four new offshore wind farms, including Kattegat II, Kriegers Flak II, North Sea I (Nordsø I), and Hesselø offshore wind farm.
Kattegat II, Kriegers Flak II, and North Sea I, each having an installed capacity of up to 2 GW, are planned to be built by 2030.