RWE has signed framework agreements with Hitachi Energy and Aibel for the joint supply of three HVDC systems slated to be used on projects in the company’s offshore wind development pipeline.
A signing ceremony held in Hamburg, Germany, celebrated the partnership between the companies.
The in-development projects are expected to be connected to the grid at the beginning of the next decade.
Hitachi Energy will supply its voltage source converter systems for long-distance transmission to shore. Aibel will be responsible for the EPC on the design, construction and commissioning of the offshore platforms.
“The deployment of offshore wind is crucial to reach climate protection targets,” says Sven Utermöhlen, CEO of RWE Offshore Wind.
“At RWE, we continue to drive forward the expansion of offshore wind energy in Europe and worldwide, because we believe in its long-term fundamentals. Through our partnership with Hitachi Energy and Aibel, we are able to secure early the necessary engineering and production capacity for three major HVDC systems to ensure future offshore wind farms can be integrated into the grid. Given the challenging market situation, this type of agreement is exactly what we need to succeed.”
The framework agreements allow Hitachi Energy and Aibel to manage the resources required to deliver the systems, such as securing the supply chain, hiring workforce, allocating engineering and manufacturing capacity and ordering materials ahead of time.
