RWE has awarded a contract for the Sofia Offshore Wind Farm to RINA to provide cable verification services and offshore converter platform (OCP) construction site quality services. The full scope of work for the Sofia project will be managed from RINA’s Sunderland office in the U.K.
The 1.4 GW Sofia Offshore Wind Farm, situated in the central North Sea area known as Dogger Bank, will be one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms, undertaken by RWE. RINA will be providing third-party surveillance to support the supply of quality assurance services required to verify the cable design, the manufacturing cycle by inspection, the project specific type test and final acceptance testing (FAT), along with reviewing cable handling and load out procedures.
“We selected RINA because of its local expertise and pioneering work in supporting improved subsea cable,” says Sofia’s transmission system senior package manager, Mark Carter of RWE. “We have previously employed RINA’s cable expert team for cable consultancy on the Triton Knoll project.”
The project includes a 220 km 320 kV high voltage DC offshore cables, running from the landfall area to the OCP as well as a shorter 7 km onshore cable to connect from the landfall area to the onshore converter station. The reliability of these cables is crucial to the project. RINA has already worked with RWE on the Triton Knoll project and has supported wind farm operators, cable industry R&D projects, and cable manufacturers with verification, design consultancy and testing services, including forensic investigations.
“RINA is delighted to have been selected by RWE to provide a broad range of services to such a prestigious project, which showcases the breadth and depth of RINA’s capabilities,” states Steve Cullen, head of project procurement solutions for Northern Europe at RINA.
“The project committed to bringing extensive opportunities to the UK supply base, and this has been realized with our work award,” Cullen continues. “Our work includes cables consultancy verification, factory inspections along with site QA/QC services, and a digital offering with the Kiber smart helmet system.”
