DEME awarded Empire Wind cable contract

DEME cable installation vessel Living Stone, the first of two state-of-the-art vessels that will work on the Empire Wind project

Belgium’s DEME Group reports that its DEME Offshore US subsidiary has been awarded a “substantial” contract for the transportation and installation of inter-array cables for the Empire Wind 1 and 2 offshore wind farms.

DEME says the contract is “substantial” and that DEME Offshore US will be responsible for the transport and installation of the inter-array cables, which have a total length of over 350 kilometers (217 miles).

The installation works will be performed by a cable installation vessel from the DEME fleet in two campaigns. Currently the company operates the state-of-the-art cable installation vessel Living Stone and this will be joined by a second DP3 cable installation vessel Viking Neptun in first quarter 2023.

Empire Wind 1 and 2 are being developed by a 50-50 partnership between Equinor and bp. Equinor will be the operator through the development, construction, and operations phases of the projects.

“We are very proud Equinor has awarded DEME Offshore US these two exceptional projects,” said Sid Florey, president, DEME Offshore US. “DEME’s excellent track record and ability to successfully execute large-scale cable projects safely and efficiently, combined with our robust technical solution for the Empire Wind projects, are the key factors for our success with the award of this contract.”

“Additionally, this contract highlights the continued expansion of our U.S. portfolio through our office in Boston and our commitment to the future growth of the US offshore wind market,” he added.

Empire Wind 1 and 2 are being developed by a 50-50 partnership between Equinor and bp. Equinor will be the operator through the development, construction, and operations phases of the projects. Once constructed, Empire Wind 1 and 2 will have a total installed capacity of more than 2 GW and will power more than 1 million New York homes.