After a tender process, Iberdrola and Areva Wind have entered a preferred wind turbine supplier agreement for the Wikinger offshore wind project, which will be located in the Baltic Sea.
Under the terms of the agreement, AREVA Wind will support Iberdrola on foundation and tower design optimization, project logistics, installation concept and project certification with regulator Bundesamt fur Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie.
The Wikinger offshore wind project, which is currently being developed in German territorial waters of the Baltic Sea, will have an installed capacity of approximately 400 MW. Construction is scheduled for 2016 and 2017.
The M5000, which the companies say is the first 5 MW wind turbine designed exclusively for large-scale offshore wind farms, will be manufactured at Areva's facilities in Bremerhaven, Germany. When signed, the contract will also include equipment transportation, installation, commissioning and maintenance.
This will be the first time that Iberdrola installs 5 MW turbines at a wind farm. The turbines will be located about 35 km off the coast of the German Island of Rugen, covering an area of 34 square km in the Baltic Sea.
Iberdrola says it is also considering using an offshore wind turbine being developed by Gamesa as a complement to the offshore wind facility.
A final investment decision will only be made if economic and technical feasibility studies, which are currently being performed by the company, show positive results.
