Ten banks and the province of Fryslân are jointly financing Windpark Fryslân, which is being built in the Dutch IJsselmeer, south of the Afsluitdijk. Never before has such a large wind park been built in a lake.
The near shore windpark is being built by Zuiderzeewind, a consortium of Van Oord and Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy. The preparatory work has already begun.
At the end of last year, Van Oord started soil investigations and in March ducts were installed at Breezanddijk for power cables that connect the wind turbines to the transformer station. In the meantime, the construction of the transformer station on Breezanddijk has also started, as well as the installation of the power cables on the Afsluitdijk. Where possible, the consortium works with local Frisian partners. After completion, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy is responsible for the maintenance of the wind farm for sixteen years.
Windpark Fryslân
Windpark Fryslân is being built in the northern part of the IJsselmeer, six kilometers off the Frisian coast near Breezanddijk. The windpark comprises 89 Siemens Gamesa turbines of 4.3 megawats, which are placed in a cluster form. It is the largest windpark in the world that is built in inland water.
With a capacity of 382.7 megwatts, Windpark Fryslân supplies enough energy for around 500,000 households. The windpark contributes more than seventy per cent to the Frisian target of 530.5 megawatts of wind energy in 2020. The windpark will be fully operational in 2021.
Nature Island
The construction of the windpark also includes the construction of a nature island south of the Afsluitdijk of 2 hectares above water and 25 hectares under water, that will add extra quality to the resting and foraging area of fish and birds.
Picture: Installation of the power cables is already under way (picture by Van Oord).
