GE to deliver onshore and offshore substations for 450 MW Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind project off the coast of Fife

GE Renewable Energy’s Grid Solutions business has been awarded a multi-million dollar project for the design, supply, construction, and commissioning of onshore and offshore wind substations for the Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) offshore wind farm, 12 miles off the Fife coast in Scotland.

The offshore wind farm project is jointly owned by EDF Renewables and ESB. GE is responsible for the turnkey delivery of all infrastructure within the perimeter, including groundworks and civil construction. NnG is expected to be fully operational in 2023.

Neart na Gaoithe will play a major role in meeting the carbon emissions reduction targets of both the Scottish and UK governments. The 400/220 kilovolt (kV) onshore wind substation will be built on a greenfield site. Once NnG is operational, it will offset more than 400,000 tons of CO2 emissions each year and provide enough electricity to power more than 375,000 Scottish homes.

In a consortium arrangement, GE is collaborating with HSM Offshore BV in the Netherlands and IV-One. HSM will provide the offshore topside platform designed by IV-One, which will house GE’s 220 kV and 66 kV substations.

The project’s onshore and offshore substation equipment includes four power transformers, four reactors, the static synchronous compensator (STATCOM), power quality components, and gas-insulated switchgear—at 66 kV, 220 kV and 400 kV—as well as protection and control, SCADA, and telecommunications systems. This solution will allow for 450 megawatts (MW) of low carbon energy to be connected to the Scottish electricity grid.