DeepOcean has been awarded framework agreements by Vattenfall for the provision of subsea cable operations and maintenance (O&M) services, now valid for Vattenfall’s operational European offshore wind portfolio.
The framework agreements are valid for a period of four years and apply to Vattenfall’s offshore wind farms in Denmark, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden.
Under the agreements, DeepOcean will provide project management, engineering, pre-installation surveys, offshore cable transportation, trenching, cable installation and jointing, termination and testing, post-installation surveys, and recovery and disposal of damaged cables.
The ocean services provider will utilize its personnel in Norway and the UK to conduct project management and engineering work for call-off orders under the framework agreement.
A first call-off has been executed for an O&M work scope at a European offshore wind farm, said DeepOcean. The company mobilized the subsea vessel Olympic Ares, which was converted with cable lay equipment and a jet trencher onboard for the scope and future offshore renewables assignments.
In the Netherlands, Vattenfall built, together with its partners BASF and Allianz, the 1.5 GW Hollandse Kust Zuid, the world’s first subsidy-free offshore wind farm.
The company also owns and operates Vesterhav Nord and Syd, two nearly identical offshore wind farms off the west coast of Denmark.
It is worth mentioning that last month, Vattenfall made the final investment decision on the Nordlicht project in the German North Sea, with the construction scheduled to commence next year.
The Nordlicht wind cluster will have a net capacity of more than 1.6 GW, with Nordlicht 1 set to become the largest offshore wind project in Germany, according to the company.