Wikinger is an operational 350MW offshore wind farm located in the German Baltic Sea. The wind farm marked Spanish renewable energy company Iberdrola’s entry into the German electricity market.
The project entailed an investment of €1.4bn ($1.34bn).
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Wikinger was connected to the national grid at the end of 2017 and was inaugurated in 2018. The project supplies renewable electricity to around 350,000 homes, which represents around 20% of the energy demand of the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
The wind farm also supports sustainability by offsetting nearly 600,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.
Iberdrola is also developing Baltic Eagle (476 MW) and Wikinger Süd (10 MW) offshore farms for the German market. Once complete, the three projects will form the largest offshore wind complex in the Baltic Sea.
Site details
The Wikinger Offshore Wind Farm is located around 34km off the north-east coast of the German island of Rügen. The site covers an area of 34km2.
Project details
The Wikinger Offshore Wind Farm was constructed in different phases.
The project consists of 70 AD 5-135 wind turbines with each capable of generating 5MW of power.
The wind turbines have a total height of 165m with a 75m high tower. They feature 67m long blades, a rotor with a diameter of 135m and a 222tonne nacelle.
A total of 280 piles were constructed in the seabed to hold the foundations of the turbines. These piles measure 40m in length, 2.5m in diameter, and have a unit weight of 150tn.
The foundations of the turbines that were installed and commissioned weigh 620tonne each. Each of the foundations has a four-legged jacket and four piles.
An offshore sub-station jacket was also installed as a part of the project.
One of the key components of the project is the Andalucía offshore substation, weighing around 8,500 tonnes.
The onshore sub-station at Lumbin is connected through two underwater cables.
Overall, the project involves laying and commissioning of more than 80km of underwater array cables.
Iberdrola established an operations, control, and maintenance centre in the Port of Sassnitz for the project.
More than 2,000 employees were involved with the development of the Wikinger Offshore Wind Farm.
Contractors
Siemens Gamesa supplied the AD 5-135 turbines for the Wikinger Offshore Wind Farm. The turbines were manufactured in plants located in Bremerhaven and Stade in Germany.
The piles for the project were built by Spanish companies Windar and Navantia, while the foundations were made by Bladt industries in Lindo (Denmark) and Navantia in Fene (Spain).
Spanish company Navantia built the offshore sub-station in Puerto Real in Southern Spain.
Iberdrola and German electricity system operator 50Hertz jointly installed and commissioned the underwater cables to Lubmin onshore substation.
Engineering and architecture consultancy COWI was associated with the project since feasibility studies.
A joint venture of COWI and IMS Ingenieurgesellschaft made the concept design of the offshore sub-station platform along with concept and detailed design of the 70 jacket-type foundations for the wind turbines. The companies also provided support during fabrication and installation of the project.
Royal Boskalis Westminster (Boskalis) and Volker Stevin International (Volker Wessels) were contracted for the transportation and installation of 70 wind turbines foundations and six offshore sub-station piles.
CWind performed a wide range of secondary works at Wikinger offshore wind farm, while Hughes undertook boulder relocation and seabed survey activities.
ITW Performance Polymers provided 10,500tn of Ducorit S2 material to make 280 grouted connections for 70 jacket installations.
Delvalle supplied the electrical cabinets for the wind mills and EOS Maritime offered offshore installation management services for the project.
Nesspoint was contracted to provide a complete marine management system including full communications suite with Digital Trunked Radio using TETRA, marine, and proband VHF.
Wikinger stake divestment
In September 2022, Iberdrola signed an agreement to divest a 49% stake in Wikinger offshore wind farm to Swiss infrastructure investment company Energy Infrastructure Partners (EIP) for €700m.
The deal values Wikinger at around €1.425bn.
As agreed, Iberdrola will continue to hold a majority stake of 51% in the wind farm as well as manage the asset.
