RWE wins London Array O&M job

RWE has won the operations, service and maintenance contract for the 630MW, 175 turbine, London Array Offshore Wind Farm, following a competitive tender.

The new services for London Array will start early 2023 and will run for 10 years.

Over the past year a tender process has been conducted to explore if there was a more efficient way to deliver the range of O&M services needed at London Array.

This has been conducted by London Array Limited on behalf of shareholders, RWE (30%), Orsted (25%), Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ, 25%) and Masdar (20%).

RWE operates eight offshore wind farms in the UK and a further five across Europe on behalf of itself and its partners, and with over 20 years of experience RWE said it is “well positioned to offer a high-quality service to London Array”.

RWE has over 1.3GW (pro rata) of operational capacity in the UK with a further 6.5GW of offshore capacity under construction or development.

This includes the Triton Knoll offshore wind farm currently in construction off the coast of Lincolnshire (857MW, RWE share 59%) and the Sofia offshore wind farm (1.4GW, RWE share 100%).

RWE is progressing four extension projects in the UK, with a combined potential installed capacity of around 3.1GW (RWE’s pro rata share: 1.6GW).  

Furthermore, the company successfully bid for two new adjacent offshore sites on Dogger Bank, with a potential total installed capacity of 3GW, in the Crown Estate’s Offshore Wind Round 4 Leasing auction.

Thomas Michel, director of offshore wind operations at RWE Renewables, said: “Being selected as O&M service provider for London Array Offshore Wind Farm is a fantastic demonstration of our renewable expertise.

“Colleagues from across our offshore business and wider support functions all played their part in securing our success.

“This demonstrates RWE as a clear leader in the industry and presents us with a great opportunity to drive performance improvements and synergies across the fleet.”

The London Array Wind Farm is located 20 km off the north Kent coast in the Outer Thames Estuary.

It is maintained and operated from the Port of Ramsgate.