UK company completes £10 million cable contract at Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm

RWE Innogy’s flagship UK offshore wind farm, Gwynt y Môr contracted EDS for terminations work with the company also operating as sub-contractors for Siemens Transmission and Distribution Limited.

EDS has now completed all high voltage and fibre optic cabling works on the 160 wind turbine transition pieces and both offshore substations at the wind farm, located more than eight miles offshore in Liverpool Bay. At the height of works, more than 75 jointers, electricians and technicians were working offshore for EDS.

RWE Innogy UK’s Gwynt y Môr Project Director, Toby Edmonds, said: “We’ve worked hard as a project to contract UK based companies where possible and we’re delighted that such a major contract, offering highly skilled job opportunities, was awarded to a North West based firm.

“More than £660m of investment has flowed into the UK economy as a result of the contracts awarded to build Gwynt y Môr.

“With all construction activity on the wind farm completed, we’re looking forward to progressing towards its ultimate milestone, the final commissioning and operation of the remaining few turbines.”

Since starting works on the project in February 2013, EDS has completed more than 160,000 offshore working hours without a lost time incident (LTI). This achievement has earned the site team recognition from the Gwynt y Môr project in the form of a Zero LTI Safety Award.

Ken Ritson, Director, EDS Ltd said: “With the construction phase of this project now completed, we are proud to have been involved from the early days, and to have had such a significant involvement in this, the second largest offshore wind farm in the world.

“We are committed to continue to develop our health and safety management system for the purposes of continual improvement and this safety award emphasises the fact that we are heading in the right direction.”

It is more than three years since offshore construction of Gwynt y Môr began in January 2012 with the first placement of scour protection on the seabed. Since then, 160 foundations and turbines, four export cables, two offshore substations and 161 array cables have been installed.