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Pioneering offshore wind farm reaches the end of the road
The decommissioning of the Vindeby Offshore Wind Farm – the world’s first ever offshore wind farm to be built and decomissioned – has been completed, says DONG Energy which began the disassembling in March after the turbines on site had reached the end of their design life.
The 5 MW wind farm, located near Lolland off the south-east coast of Denmark, was constructed in 1991 in order to test the potential for offshore wind, and has been operational for more than 25 years.
The wind farm’s blades, nacelles and towers were taken down individually by a mobile crane and placed on board a jack-up vessel.
The concrete foundations were broken down on site – mainly by hydraulic demolition shears and a hydraulic hammer, but also with the use of milling tools. Water depths of only two to five meters led to challenging conditions, as only a few vessels were able to work in the area, says DONG.
The turbine components and parts from the foundations were shipped to shore in Nyborg Harbour in Denmark, where they will be recycled as spare parts for other wind turbines.
One of the turbines from the wind farm will be preserved in an exhibition at the Danish Museum of Energy in Bjerringbro in Jutland.
News Item details
Journal title: Energy World
Subjects: Energy engineering, Offshore wind power, Decommissioning, Wind power, Wind turbine, Wind farms
