RWE has appointed Fugro to complete a geophysical survey off the Danish west coast. Up to three survey vessels will be deployed to carry out a detailed pre-construction survey including a search for unexploded ordnance (UXO) up to approximately 34 kilometres off the coast of Thorsminde. The data acquired is important and will define the cable routes and exact turbine locations for RWE’s Thor offshore wind farm.

The awarded contract builds upon Fugro’s prior involvement in the project, which included a comprehensive geotechnical site investigation conducted in 2022.

Günther Fenle, Project Director Thor Offshore Wind Farm, RWE Offshore Wind said: 
“We are looking forward to using the data collected by Fugro to finalise the layout of the wind farm and to determine the routes for the inter-array and export cables. This is an important step towards the start of the construction works at sea in 2025.”

Marc Kebbel, Fugro’s Service Line Director of Hydrography and Cable Route Surveys said: 
“We are using a wide range of survey techniques, comprising offshore and nearshore standard geophysical and UXO survey techniques, a seismic land refraction survey, and last but not least, Fugro’s rapid airborne multibeam mapping system (RAMMS) for comprehensive mapping of the shallow area and beach in the transition zone.”

The UXO campaign for RWE’s Thor offshore wind farm will run until December 2023. 

“The metocean challenges posed by Thor’s exposed offshore location, such as high waves and strong wind in autumn and winter are adding to the complexity. Our ongoing collaboration with RWE reinforces our position as a trusted partner in the development of clean energy solutions,” added Marc Kebbel.

With a planned capacity of 1,000 megawatts (MW) Thor will be Denmark’s largest offshore wind farm to date. Once fully operational, which is planned to be no later than 2027, Thor would be capable of producing enough green electricity to supply the equivalent of more than one million Danish households.

RWE is a leading global player in renewables and number 2 worldwide in offshore wind. The Thor project will help to support the company’s goal to grow its global offshore wind capacity from 3.3 to 8 gigawatts by 2030.

RWE is already involved in the Danish Rødsand 2 offshore wind farm, which is located south of the Danish island Lolland, approximately 10 kilometres southeast of Rødbyhavn. The wind farm has an installed capacity of 207 MW (RWE share: 20%) and has been in operation since 2010.

Thor offshore wind farm is the first of three offshore wind farms decided as a part of the 2018 Energy Agreement. Thor will be the hitherto largest offshore wind farm in Denmark and will be established a minimum of 22 kilometers off the coast of Thorsminde on the west coast of Jutland. The wind farm was put up for tender with a flexibility of 800-1000 MW, and a new aspect is that grid connection from the wind farm and to the transmission grid is included in the tendering procedure. Thor will be able to supply electricity for around 1 million Danish households. Total investment costs for Thor have been estimated at around DKK 15.5 billion. Thor will be fully established and connected to the grid by no later than at the end of the 2027, and the authorization is for 30 years, with an option for a five-year extension.