Hollandse Kust West Alpha
OperationalOffshore GridNL700 MW220 kV62 km2024
Basic information
8 fieldsAlso Known As
Hollandse Kust (west Alpha) · HKW Alpha · HKW VI grid connection
Status
operational
Capacity
700 MW
Owners
Project Company
Type
offshore grid
Transmission Model
TSO Build & Own
Website
Supply Chain (6)
Project Timeline (8)
31 Mar 2024Commercial Operations Full Power
According to a 2021 DNV GL study for the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM), TenneT’s 700 MW Hollandse Kust West Alpha offshore AC grid connection, with two 69 km export cables, was scheduled to be commissioned by 31 March 2024, connecting into the onshore grid at Beverwijk. This commissioning date represents the planned start of full operational service for the standardized Hollandse Kust West Alpha platform within TenneT’s offshore grid rollout.
2023Cable Installation Complete
By early 2023, the first subsea sea cable connection for TenneT’s Hollandse Kust (West Alpha) offshore transmission infrastructure had been completed by the Jan De Nul and LS Cable & System contractor combination, establishing the first 700 MW export circuit between the West Alpha offshore substation and the Dutch onshore grid.
20 Apr 2023Cable Installation Start
On 20 April 2023, Jan De Nul, in consortium with LS Cable & System, began installing the remaining section of the second 220 kV subsea export cable for TenneT’s Hollandse Kust (West Alpha) offshore transmission infrastructure, using the cable‑laying vessel Isaac Newton off the coast of Heemskerk/Wijk aan Zee to realise the second grid connection between the West Alpha offshore substation and the onshore grid near Egmond aan Zee.
2022Cable Landfall Complete
In 2022, the onshore landfall section of the second export cable for Hollandse Kust (West Alpha) was completed when Jan De Nul pulled the first part of the second cable under the dunes near the Dutch coast, finishing the shore crossing so that in 2023 it could be retrieved offshore and jointed to the remaining subsea section onboard the Isaac Newton.
May 2022Cable Installation Start
In spring 2022, Jan De Nul's cable installation vessel Isaac Newton began the first campaign of 220 kV export cable installation for TenneT's Hollandse Kust West Alpha grid connection, starting from the beach near Egmond aan Zee. The vessel installed four sea cables in this first campaign, completing the first part by December 2022.
23 Mar 2022Cable Supplier Selected
On 23 March 2022, TenneT awarded a consortium led by Boskalis, with Orient Cables (NBO) as partner, the Hollandse Kust West Beta export cable contract, which also includes installation of a 9 km 66 kV interconnector cable between the Hollandse Kust West Alpha and Hollandse Kust West Beta offshore substations. Under this contract, Boskalis will carry out installation works and NBO will design and supply the high-voltage cable system, with the 220 kV AC export circuits making landfall near the existing Wijk aan Zee onshore high-voltage substation.
31 Mar 2021Cable Route Engineering
By 31 March 2021, the cable routes for TenneT’s offshore grid connections, including the Hollandse Kust (West, site VI) / Hollandse Kust West Alpha connection, had been established. This defined the transmission corridors between the Hollandse Kust West Alpha offshore wind area and the designated onshore connection point at Beverwijk as part of TenneT’s standardised Dutch offshore grid rollout.
31 Mar 2021Regulatory Other
Authority: Autoriteit Consument & Markt (ACM) · Licence: Methodology for estimating additional efficient opex allowances for TenneT’s offshore grid platforms, including Hollandse Kust West Alpha
On 31 March 2021, DNV GL delivered a final report to the Dutch regulator ACM setting out a methodology to estimate the additional efficient operating expenditure of TenneT’s offshore grid. The study explicitly includes the standardised 700 MW Hollandse Kust platforms such as Hollandse Kust West Alpha, listing it with a planned commissioning in Q1 2024 and a connection point at Beverwijk, and explains how ACM will use these assumptions to calculate platform-specific opex allowances to be added to TenneT’s allowed revenues in the 2022–2026 regulatory period.