UK engineering company JGC Engineering and Technical Serviceshas, on behalf of Siemens, completed the construction of high voltage equipment containers for the Moray East offshore substation platforms.
"The Moray East offshore windfarm project completed its first fabrication milestone as the Thurso SME engineering firm finalised work on the containers which will be fitted in the three offshore substation platforms," said a press release from Siemens.
JGC fabricated eight of 12 containers at its site in Thurso and have also supported Siemens with other offshore projects in the UK.
The containers’ total length, height and volume are larger than an Airbus A380 aircraft which highlights the impressive feat Siemens and JGC have completed together. They have been designed to house and protect the specialized high voltage equipment from Siemens which form a vital part of the project’s three offshore substation platforms.
The three offshore substation platforms will transform the electrical output of the wind turbines from 66 kilovolts (kV) to the transmission voltage of 220 kV.
From Thurso, the containers will make their way to Fabricom-Smulders in Belgium where the substation equipment will be installed inside. The containers will then be lifted onto the offshore substation platforms, where cabling and equipment will be added and finally, once commissioned, the three platforms will be sailed out to their locations in the Moray Firth in summer 2020.
Multi-million-pound contracts have also been awarded to firms in Scotland for civil construction work in the project and both Moray East and Siemens have been involved in school projects to encourage the next generation of scientists and engineers.