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GE Vernova, Seatrium Will Build HVDC System for TenneT’s Dutch Offshore Grid Project

Global energy company GE Vernova and Seatrium Limited, a Singaporean state-owned group, said their consortium has been awarded a third contract by Dutch transmission system operator TenneT for construction of a 2-GW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric offshore transmission system in the Netherlands.

The groups on June 10 said construction is set to begin this month, with commissioning expected by 2031. The contract is part of a Framework Cooperation Agreement with TenneT announced by GE Vernova and Seatrium in March of last year. The consortium has said the HVDC system supports TenneT’s goal of grid-connecting at least 40 GW of offshore wind generation capacity produced in the Dutch and German areas of the North Sea.

The agreement is expected to cover three projects—Jmuiden Ver Beta, IJmuiden Ver Gamma, and Nederwiek 2—that are each valued at about €2 billion ($2.15 billion). The contract announced Monday supports Nederwiek 2; the contracts for the other two projects were announced in March 2023. Nederwiek 2 is located about 60 miles off the coast of the Netherlands.

This is an artist’s rendering of TenneT’s 2-GW HVDC platform. Source: TenneT

“With the successful call-off of Nederwiek 2 from the Framework Cooperation Agreement with our Partners GE Vernova and Seatrium, we are now starting into the delivery of the third project with this consortium,” said Dr. Johannes Kammer, associate director of large offshore wind projects for TenneT. “We are pleased with the progress we made already in the first two projects with these partners. Now we experience the benefits of using the works from the initial two projects on the next one as we design one and build it many times.”

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GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions, the consortium leader, will be responsible for the engineering, procurement, construction, installation, and commissioning of the HVDC converter stations. Seatrium’s scope of work will include the engineering, procurement, construction, transportation, installation, and commissioning of the 2-GW HVDC Offshore Converter Platform.

Johan Bindele, head of Grid Systems Integration at GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business, said, “TenneT is playing a crucial role in the energy transition, and we are honored to support their efforts with our advanced HVDC system. GE Vernova is dedicated to decarbonizing and electrifying the world, and the TenneT projects exemplify our commitment to advancing renewable energy infrastructure.”

Samuel Wong, executive vice president of Fixed Platforms at Seatrium, said, “We are pleased to partner with TenneT and GE Vernova to deliver this transformative offshore wind solution. This project underscores our commitment to helping our customers achieve their renewable energy goals by providing innovative and cost-effective solutions that help accelerate the energy transition. With valuable experience from working on the first two platforms, we are confident of delivering a high-quality end product to our customer, as well as achieving greater synergies through project repeatability in our series-build strategy with the One Seatrium Global Delivery Model.”

TenneT last year announced an agreement with Hitachi Energy to supply onshore and offshore HVDC converter stations and other infrastructure for European power grids.

Darrell Proctor is a senior associate editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).