Name of the Project
Sofia Offshore Wind Farm.

Location
The project is located on Dogger Bank, 195 km from the UK coast’s nearest point.

Project Owner/s
RWE, through its subsidiary RWE Renewables.

Project Description
The project entails the construction of a 1.4 GW offshore wind farm.

A total of 100, 14 MW turbines will be installed on site, each 262 m tall.

A network of about 370 km of interarray cables will transport power from the turbines to the wind farm’s offshore converter platform, where the electricity will be converted from 66 kV ac to 320 kV dc. The converter will be the most powerful offshore converter station ever fabricated.

Offshore, two 220-km-long export cables – forming a single high-voltage direct current (HVDC) circuit – will bring the power from the wind farm to the Teeside coast.

Onshore, two 7 km direct current cables – forming a single HVDC – will transport power from landfall to a new converter station adjacent to the Wilton Complex, near the village of Lazenby. A further six 2 km ac cables will transmit power to the existing national grid substation at Lazenby.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Not stated.

Planned Start/End Date
First power is expected in 2024/25.

Latest Developments
RWE has selected a consortium comprising GE’s Grid Solutions and Sembcorp Marine as the preferred suppliers for the project’s HVDC electrical transmission system.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (wind turbines); GE Grid Solutions (voltage source converter valve and HVDC control system); Sembcorp Marine (offshore converter platform).

Contact Details for Project Information
RWE, tel +44 330 122 9670.