Tennet starts up DolWin1 grid connection

GERMANY: Tennet's 800MW DolWin1 grid connection has begun operating, serving the 200MW Trianel Windpark Borkum project.

by David Weston 28 July 2015

Tennet's 800MW DolWin1 grid connection starts at the Dolwin Alpha substation

Overall offshore German transmission capacity is now 4.3GW, with 3.73GW added this year alone, according to Tennet.

DolWin1 is Tennet's fifth connection this year, following the 690MW HelWin2, the 864MW SylWin1, the 576MW HelWin1 and the 800MW BornWin2 links.

Swiss engineering firm ABB was contracted for the DolWin1 link, despite Siemens being given the four previous grid connection contracts. The DolWin alpha converter station was manufacturerd by Dutch group Heerema Fabrication.

The latest platform will serve the 200MW Trianel Windpark Borkum, where all 40 Areva (now branded Adwen) 5MW turbines are now connected. DolWin1 will also tranmit power from the forthcoming 400MW (formerly MEG 1) project, being developed by Deme Group and Windreich.

Until the 900MW DolWin3 transmission link is commissioned in 2017, DolWin1 is also temporarily serving the 312MW Borkum Riffgrund 1 project.

DolWin1 runs for 75 kilometres from the DolWin Alpha converter station, to the shore in north Germany before travelling for a further 90 kilometres underground, to the onshore substation.