German shipbuilder Meyer Werft has been contracted to supply steel structures for Amprion’s four offshore converter platforms. This is the first contract of its kind for the Meyer Werft shipyard and marks the shipyard’s formal entry into the offshore wind market.
Amprion indicated that the shipyard will produce about 43,500 tons of steel components for the DolWin4 and BorWin4 and BalWin1 and BalWin2 grid connection systems located in the North Sea region. Among them, about 32,000 tons of steel sections for the BalWin1 and BalWin2 projects; and about 11,500 tons of steel sections for the DolWin4 and BorWin4 projects. Deliveries are scheduled for fall 2024 to spring 2027.
In 2022, Meyer Werft Shipyard established a joint venture with the Finnish company Admares Marine. The new company, called Meyer Floating Solutions, is headquartered in Turku, Finland, a strategic location in the Finnish maritime cluster, and is dedicated to developing novel solutions using floating real estate to leverage the shipbuilding group’s construction capabilities. The joint venture was first announced in March 2022 and renamed Admares Marine, which has been spun off from modular construction company Admares Group, with the first concepts proposed including an overwater terrace extension in Dubai, floating villas and hotel concepts.
Four offshore grid connection systems, DolWin4 and BorWin4, as well as BalWin1 and BalWin2, are being used to connect offshore wind farms in the North Sea to the onshore transmission grid. The systems are installed essentially in parallel on both land and sea sides.
The DolWin4 and BorWin4 projects have a combined transmission capacity of 1.8 GW and are scheduled to be operational in 2028.BalWin1 and BalWin2 each have a transmission capacity of 2 GW and are scheduled to be operational in 2029 and 2030, respectively.
In September, Meyer Floating Solutions also unveiled the world’s first floating cruise ship terminal, an innovative concept that marks a paradigm shift in sustainable harbor expansion. The concept can be equipped with up to three jetties to accommodate multiple ships at the same time. Designed for quay lengths ranging from 205 to 320 meters, the quay footprint is approximately 410 meters long and 265 meters wide, and can provide hotels, parking, energy supply centers or shopping centers.