Holland gets offshore wind farm

and Dutch energy company

have signed the final contracts for their joint realisation of the first Dutch offshore wind farm, located at Egmond aan Zee, 10 miles off the Dutch coast. The wind farm will be constructed in 2006.

Yesterday, NoordzeeWind, an equal joint venture between Shell and Nuon awarded the construction contract to Bouwcombinatie Egmond, a joint venture between Dutch offshore contractor Ballast Nedam and Danish wind-turbine manufacturer Vestas.

Thirty-six wind turbines with an overall capacity of 108 Megawatts will be constructed 10 kilometres off the coast of Egmond aan Zee.

On a yearly basis, the wind turbines will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of more than 100,000 Dutch households. From the end of 2006, the wind farm will start generating sustainable energy, which Nuon will supply to the Dutch market. The project involves an investment in excess of € 200 million.

The initial construction work is planned at the end of 2005 with the installation of power cables between the grid connection point at Velsen and the wind farm's own transformer substation located on a site near the shore. The foundation piles of the wind turbines will be driven into the seabed during the spring of 2006, after which the wind turbines will be installed.