HelWin1
OperationalOffshore GridDE576 MW250 kV130 km2015
Basic information
9 fieldsAlso Known As
HelWin1 HVDC link · HVDC HelWin1
Status
operational
Capacity
576 MW
Owners
Project Company
Type
offshore grid
Transmission Model
TSO Build & Own
Expected Life
30 years
Website
Supply Chain (3)
Project Timeline (10)
2015Commercial Operations Full Power
HelWin1 grid connection system commissioned and operational.
Jan 2015Onss Commissioned
Commissioning of the HVDC HelWin1 link, including the onshore converter station at Büttel and the offshore HelWin Alpha platform, was completed in January 2015. This concluded testing and commissioning of the 576 MW, ±250 kV system and allowed the project to be handed over to its owner TenneT in February 2015 for operational service transmitting offshore wind power from the German Bight to the mainland grid.
~Jan 2014System Testing
According to Grokipedia's HVDC HelWin1 article, system integration and testing proceeded through 2014, with initial energization achieved that year and final handover to TenneT in early 2015 after the HelWin alpha platform installation in August 2013. This shows that the main system testing phase took place during 2014, later than the originally planned January 2013 start of test operations mentioned in earlier project announcements.
26 Aug 2013Offshore Construction Start
Siemens installed the HelWin Alpha offshore converter platform for the HelWin1 HVDC grid connection at its final position northwest of the island of Helgoland on 26 August 2013, marking a major offshore construction milestone for TenneT’s 576 MW link. The float-over topside, weighing around 12,000 tonnes and measuring 75 m by 50 m, was set onto a support substructure anchored to the seabed with large steel piles in about 23 m water depth in the German North Sea.
~Jan 2013Cable Installation Start
The HVDC HelWin1 construction timeline on Grokipedia states that subsea cable laying for the 85 km offshore DC link followed installation of the HelWin alpha platform and "spanned late 2013 into 2014." This indicates that the export cable installation campaign began in late 2013, later than the originally projected 2012 start based on early logistics and storage of Prysmian export cables.
30 Nov 2011Manufacturing Update
By 30 November 2011, Offshore Marine Services had completed its first cable storage task for the Siemens–Prysmian consortium on the HelWin1 export cable system, safely storing 15 drums of cable and associated accessories at its Nordenham facility ahead of planned installation from 2012.
2010Cable Supplier Selected
In 2010, transmission system operator TenneT (then Transpower) awarded a contract for the HelWin1 offshore grid connection to a consortium including Prysmian PowerLink as cable supplier, covering the design, supply and installation of the ~130 km HVDC export cable system linking the HelWin Alpha platform to the onshore converter station at Büttel.
2010Converter Supplier Selected
In 2010, TenneT contracted a consortium led by Siemens to deliver the HelWin1 offshore grid connection, selecting Siemens to supply the HVDC Plus voltage-sourced converter systems and associated offshore HelWin Alpha platform and onshore converter station equipment for the 576 MW, ±250 kV link.
Date TBDCable Installation Complete
Before HelWin1 entered service, Siemens’ consortium partner Prysmian had supplied and laid in bundle the two high-voltage direct current export cables for the project, each about 130 km long and designed for 250 kV DC operation. The route comprises roughly 85 km of subsea cable across the North Sea and 45 km of underground cable to the onshore converter station at Büttel, forming the complete transmission link between the HelWin Alpha offshore platform and the German mainland grid and leaving the cables ready for final connection and commissioning.
Date TBDEarly Development Other
TenneT initiated the planning phase for the HVDC HelWin1 offshore transmission link as part of a wider programme to establish HVDC connections for integrating North Sea offshore wind generation into the German mainland grid, specifically targeting the connection of the Nordsee Ost and Meerwind wind farms over an approximately 130 km route near Helgoland.