Construction begins on Amrumbank West wind farm in the North Sea

E.ON strengthens its position as a global leader in offshore wind power

E.ON is further expanding its renewables business and has started construction of Amrumbank West wind farm in the North Sea. The first foundation was installed today 37 kilometer northwest of the island of Helgoland.

To help build Amrumbank West and other offshore projects, E.ON has chartered the MPI Discovery, a self-elevating turbine installation vessel or jackup rig, for several years. The ship is loaded with material in Cuxhaven and proceeds to the deepwater site. It lowers six legs on to the seabed and then raises itself hydraulically above the surface of the sea, creating a stable platform for operating the ram and cranes it uses to install foundations, towers, and turbines. The ram is used to drive the 60-meter-long steel tubular monopile foundations roughly 30 meters into the seabed at water depths of up to 24 meters. The entire foundation structure, which consists of the monopile and the transition piece, weighs about 900 metric tons. E.ON is using a state-of-the-art system to reduce water-borne noise during pile-driving.

Capital expenditures on the project will total about