Equinor and Polenergia with contracts

Equinor and Polenergia have signed contracts for the transportation and installation of foundations and offshore substations for the Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3 projects. The offshore work between 2026 and 2027 will be carried out by Heerema Marine Contractors, using, among others, a semi-submersible heavy lift crane. The offshore wind farms Baltic 2 and Baltic 3, with a total capacity of 1440 MW, will power more than 2 million households with green energy.

Heerema Marine Contractors is a Dutch service contractor for the offshore oil & gas and offshore wind sectors. The company has extensive experience in the installation of offshore floating structures using its own fleet of floating cranes. The contract with Equinor and Polenergia includes the transportation and installation of 100 monopiles, transition elements and two offshore transformer stations, which will be transported from the production facilities and installed at the final location of the Baltic 2 and Baltic 3 projects.

“The signing of the contracts for the transport and installation of the foundations and offshore transformer stations for the Bałtyk 2 and 3 wind farm projects consistently brings us closer to the moment when the final investment decision is made and construction begins. Our projects, which will be among the first to be built in the Baltic Sea, are extremely important for the development of the Polish offshore sector, accelerating the energy transition process and increasing Poland’s energy independence. Energy from the Bałtyk 2 and 3 offshore wind farms will power more than 2 million Polish homes. We are proud to be able to pursue our mission of providing energy in a safe, sustainable and responsible manner,” says Michał Jerzy Kołodziejczyk, CEO of Equinor in Poland.

During the installation of the Baltic 2 and Baltic 3 offshore wind farm components, the contractor will use a semi-submersible vessel – a heavy-lift crane vessel named Thialf (IMO No. 8757740; GT 136 709; deadweight 129 221 t, displacement 198 754 t). Each of its two cranes has a lift of up to 7100 tonnes at 31.2m overhang. The vessel’s advanced capabilities, including the provision of a dynamic positioning system, mean that Thialf is being used for complex tasks in large-scale offshore wind and offshore oil & gas projects.

The Semi Submersible Crane Vessel (SSCV) Thialf has been adapted to its Baltic Sea capabilities with the participation of a Polish facility from the Heerema Group.

The plan adopted by Equinor and Polenergia and the contractor is that all foundations (monopiles and jacket type) will be installed in 2026, while the so-called offshore substation topsides will be installed in separate campaigns in 2026 and 2027.

“The Baltic 2 and Baltic 3 offshore wind farms will power more than 2 million households with clean energy. The contracts we have just signed bring us significantly closer to this goal. The contracts cover the transportation and installation of foundations for the wind towers, as well as the installation of the offshore substations necessary for the operation of both investments. We are convinced that the wind farms we are developing in the Baltic Sea will change the face of the Polish energy sector and the Polish economy. The first electricity from our most advanced projects, Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3, will flow as early as 2027,” – says Jerzy Zan, CEO of Polenergia S.A.

The Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3 offshore wind farms, with a total capacity of 1440 MW, will be located in the Polish exclusive economic zone of the Baltic Sea, between 22 and 37 km from the coastline. The first energy from the Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3 projects is expected to flow into the grid
already in 2027. The commercial phase of their operation is planned from 2028.

In the next phase of offshore wind development in Poland, Equinor and Polenergia are developing the Bałtyk 1 project, which will be 81 km from the shore. With a capacity of up to 1560 MW, Bałtyk 1 is the largest offshore wind farm project in the Baltic Sea and is being prepared for auction in 2025. The offshore wind farms Baltic 1, 2 and 3, developed by Equinor and Polenergia, will power more than 4 million households with green energy.

Source: PortalMorski.pl