Cadeler, the Danish contractor for offshore wind energy projects, has signed its first contract for its new installation vessel named Wind Apex. This contract is aimed at transporting and installing turbines at the Dogger Bank C offshore wind farm located in the North Sea off the coast of England.
Contract Details and Wind Apex Vessel
According to the agreement, the Wind Apex vessel will provide additional installation capacity alongside the existing project vessel and will participate in the installation of 87 GE Vernova Haliade-X 14MW turbines in the 1.2 gigawatt Dogger Bank C project. This vessel will also be available for use in the remaining phases of the Dogger Bank project.
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Wind Apex is the third vessel in Cadeler's A series and will operate after Wind Ally and Wind Ace. The vessel has 5,600 square meters of deck space and a loading capacity of over 17,000 tons, designed to perform both foundation and turbine installation tasks. In July, Cadeler secured a green loan of €247 million (equivalent to $277.5 million) to cover part of the construction costs of this vessel.
Plans and Phases of the Dogger Bank Project
This campaign also marks the first activity of the Wind Apex vessel, and Cadeler hopes to deploy this vessel soon in a project of this scale. The contract was signed while construction continues in three phases of the 3.6 gigawatt Dogger Bank project, located approximately 130 kilometers off the northeast coast of England.
By November 2025, all 277 foundations and transition pieces in this project will be installed, and turbine installation at Dogger Bank B has reached its mid-stage in October. The Port of Nigg in Scotland has been selected as the assembly base for the turbine components related to phases B and C.
The Dogger Bank project is owned by SSE Renewables and Equinor, each holding 40 percent of the shares, with Vårgrønn holding the remaining 20 percent. SSE is responsible for construction, while Equinor will operate the project after its completion.
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