Amprion awards converter stations to Siemens Energy und Dragados Offshore
LanWin1 and LanWin3 to be greatly accelerated
Amprion Offshore GmbH has awarded Siemens Energy and Dragados Offshore to build the converter stations for the LanWin1 and LanWin3 offshore grid connection systems. The partners are to build two converters each offshore and onshore in the new 2 gigawatt power class. The systems are to be commissioned two and three years earlier than originally planned.
Due to the acceleration measures planned by the German Government Amprion Offshore had invited tenders for the construction of the converters earlier than planned in the fall of 2022. The plans provide for LanWin1 to go into operation as early as 2029 instead of 2031 and for LanWin3 as early as 2030 instead of 2033. With only three months to tender and award the contract, Amprion has now been able to complete the process in record time. The experience from previous contracting processes has been an important factor. The contract is worth a total of more than €4 billion including maintenance for ten years.
"We are working at high pressure to meet the accelerated scenarios of the German government to install 30 GW of offshore wind energy by 2030. That is why we are very pleased to have won two partners in Siemens Energy and Dragados Offshore who can implement our converters quickly and reliably," says Peter Barth, managing director of Amprion Offshore GmbH. With the 2 gigawatt converters, Amprion is entering the new performance class of offshore grid connection systems. "Together, we will be doing important pioneering work on the road to climate neutrality," emphasizes Barth.
Systems are to go into operation much earlier than initially planned
Last summer, Amprion had already commissioned the Spanish-German consortium to build the converters for DolWin4 and BorWin4. The companies have promised an accelerated start-up for BorWin4 by one year. Amprion is particularly pleased that an even greater acceleration has now been promised for LanWin1 and LanWin3: "The market is currently extremely tense. Especially the required shipyards for converter platforms are deficient in Germany and Europe. That is why two or three years of acceleration are an enormous challenge," says Dr. Carsten Lehmköster, who is Managing Director of Amprion Offshore GmbH together with Barth. "The commitment of our partners is an extremely important signal. We are now working together to implement the acceleration measures in order to meet the political goals of the federal government."
The offshore grid connection systems LanWin1 and LanWin3
The two offshore grid connection systems LanWin1 and LanWin3 will connect offshore wind farms in the North Sea to the onshore transmission grid in Wehrendorf (Lower Saxony) and Westerkappeln (North Rhine-Westphalia). They will be installed parallel to one another for the most part on land and at sea, too. Each of them has a transmission capacity of 2 gigawatts and together they will be able to satisfy the electricity needs of around four million people from offshore wind energy. According to plans of the German Government, the grid connection systems will go into service in 2029 and 2030. LanWin1 is an approximately 390 kilometre-long connection, some 170 kilometres of which will be laid at sea. LanWin3 will also have a total route length of around 390 kilometres, with some 160 kilometres at sea. The land sections of both LanWin1 and LanWin3 are planned as underground direct current cables.
