Jan De Nul Group and Hitachi, Ltd. have announced that they have signed a contract with overall work for the manufacturing and installation of 21 5.2MW wind turbines (109.2MW) for the Changhua Offshore Wind Farm Project, which Taiwan Power Company plans to construct off the coast of Fangyuan in Changhua County in Central Western Taiwan.

The work includes design, manufacturing and installation of all foundations and wind turbines as well as maintenance for a period of five years. The overall project has a value of 25 billion New Taiwan Dollar (approx. 800 million USD), of which two-thirds (2/3) of the amount is for Jan De Nul and the remaining one-thirds (1/3) is for Hitachi.

Under the Changhua Offshore Wind Farm Project, Jan De Nul will be responsible for the foundation design, fabrication and installation, wind turbine installation, supply and installation of cables off- and onshore as well as for the upgrading of the electrical substation. Hitachi will be in charge of manufacturing, assembly, operation and maintenance (O&M), and other work related to the 21 offshore wind turbines with downwind rotor, each with a generation capacity of 5.2MW. A particular feature of the design is that the foundations are designed to withstand cyclonic waves and winds, and earthquake loads.

Seabed survey and geotechnical investigation will start in May 2018. Manufacturing of the foundations and wind turbines is planned mainly during in 2019 in order to deliver them in early 2020. Test operation of the equipment is targeted to start in the summer of 2020, and the completion is scheduled for the end of December of the same year.

Promotion of wind power generation in Taiwan

Taiwan has announced a four-year plan for the promotion of wind power generation, which is aimed at accelerating the introduction of renewable energy. A goal under this plan is to introduce offshore wind power facilities with a cumulative total generation capacity of 4GW. In response, Taiwan Power Company plans to increase the generation capacity of its offshore wind power generation facilities. Specifically, TPC aims to achieve 1GW by 2025 and 1.8GW by 2030. TPC has been advancing the construction plan in the open sea off the coast of Changhua, believed to be the location with the greatest wind power in Taiwan.

The winning consortium’s strength

Jan De Nul Group, who will be the leader of the Consortium, is a world-class marine construction company, having a yearly turnover of approximately 2 billion USD. Its main business is marine construction related to subsea cables, gas and oil supply lines, offshore wind farms, and other facilities. The renewable energy industry is an important business for this company. Owning wind turbine installation and cable laying vessels, the company boasts an extensive track record and experience in EPCI, including installation of offshore wind farms and laying of subsea cables.

Hitachi boasts a lineup of 5MW-, 2.5MW-, and 2MW-class wind turbines and has established a system that allows it to handle all processes from development to design, manufacturing, sales, and maintenance of the turbines. The company boasts the largest share with its with wind turbines activities, which did start up in 2016 in Japan. Among the cumulative total of 324 units for which it has received orders, 184 turbines are being operated commercially. Hitachi is aiming to contribute to other Asian regions such as Taiwan, Southeast Asia in terms of creation of a low-carbon society through our superior wind power generation systems.

The Changhua Offshore Wind Farm Project will be constructed in a region known to be very sensitive to typhoons. The consortium submitted its design with the Hitachi’s proprietary wind turbine with downwind rotor. These turbines feature a downwind configuration, which reduces wind loading by keeping the rotor oriented in such a way that it is not affected by crosswinds, even during shutdown due to strong gusts. Hitachi has obtained the “Wind Turbine Class T” certification (Class T certification) - an international standard on wind-resistant design reflecting consideration for regions subject to frequent typhoons - ahead of other wind turbine manufactures in the world.

Jan De Nul and Hitachi will contribute to expanding renewable energy in Taiwan by combining the expertise of Jan De Nul in marine construction, which the company has developed by being involved in projects all over the world, with the high-quality maintenance technologies and expertise related to wind turbines that Hitachi has cultivated in the Japanese market.