Van Oord installs first monopile at Ecowende offshore wind farm
Van Oord has installed the first monopile of Ecowende’s Hollandse Kust West offshore wind farm last Wednesday. The project, a joint venture between Shell, Eneco and Chubu, is set to become the most ecological offshore wind farm to date. Van Oord used its new state-of-the-art offshore wind installation vessel Boreas for the installation, marking the successful start of installing all 52 monopile foundations produced by Sif.
As Ecowende’s T&I contractor, Van Oord is responsible for a wide scope of work: transporting and installing all foundations, laying and connecting the inter-array cables, transporting the wind turbine generators (WTGs), and designing and installing scour protection. The Ecowende wind farm is being developed with the aim of accelerating the energy transition while mitigating the effects of offshore wind on marine life and boosting biodiversity.
Boreas: Van Oord’s new flagship for sustainable offshore construction
The first monopile installation was executed by Boreas, Van Oord’s new next-generation offshore wind installation vessel. As the largest and most sustainable vessel of its kind, Boreas is specifically designed to support the latest generation of very large offshore wind turbines. It is equipped with a 3,310-tonne crane, incorporates advanced emissions-reducing technologies, and is built to operate on methanol—significantly lowering its environmental footprint. Boreas’ low-noise positioning and installation systems help minimise disturbance to marine life, making it a key asset for projects with ambitious ecological requirements such as Ecowende.
Two monopile diameters
The Ecowende wind farm will feature monopiles in two diameters (8.8m and 9.3m), both produced by SIF, to support varying turbine tower heights. Research indicates that higher turbine tip heights may allow birds to fly more safely between the structures, reducing collision risks. Ecowende will monitor bird behaviour and collision numbers throughout the construction and operational phases to further advance knowledge on nature-inclusive offshore wind development.
“Installation of the first monopile is a major milestone for Ecowende. Not only does it bring us a step closer to the wind farm’s realisation, it also allows us to test innovative installation techniques minimising underwater noise. We are proud to work with partners such as Van Oord who fully embrace our ambition to build a wind farm in harmony with nature and accelerate the large-scale roll-out of offshore wind in the Netherlands and beyond.”
About the offshore wind farm
The Ecowende wind farm (Hollandse Kust West site VI) will be located approximately 53 kilometres off the Dutch coast near IJmuiden. With an installed capacity of around 760 MW, the project will supply roughly 3% of the current Dutch electricity demand with green power. The wind farm is scheduled to be fully operational end 2026.