By 2 April 2026 TenneT reported that construction of the IJmuiden Ver Alpha onshore converter station in Nieuwdorp (municipality of Borsele) had reached its highest point at 25 metres, with the large converter halls already almost wind- and watertight, marking an important civil construction milestone for the project.
Windpowernl, citing TenneT project manager Maurice Olijerhoek, reports that from February 2026 construction consortium NRG will begin installing the onshore HVDC cables underground for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 grid connections, along the route from De Piet harbour (Arnemuiden) to the converter stations in the Sloe industrial zone. This marks the start of onshore construction works for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha grid connection.
Following delivery of 63 large cable reels to Vlissingen, containing minus, plus and earth land cables manufactured by Prysmian of which 12 km are for IJmuiden Ver Alpha, NRG will from February 2026 begin installing these onshore cables underground along the route from De Piet harbour in Arnemuiden to the Sloe-area converter stations as part of the IJmuiden Ver Alpha grid connection.
Upgrade to access detailed cable specifications, supply chain data, projected timeline, financial analysis, and more.
IJmuiden Ver Alpha is a 2 GW offshore high-voltage direct current (HVDC) grid connection being developed by TenneT to connect the IJmuiden Ver Alpha wind farm site, located roughly 62 kilometres off the Dutch coast in the IJmuiden Ver Wind Farm Zone, to the onshore 380 kV transmission network in ...
Owners
IJmuiden Ver Wind Farm Zone (IJVWFZ) Alpha grid connection, Net op zee IJmuiden Ver Alpha
By 9 January 2026, Prysmian had completed manufacturing and delivered 63 large reels of onshore land cables to Verbrugge Terminals in Vlissingen-Oost for TenneT’s IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 grid connections, marking the end of more than two and a half years of design, testing and production of the minus, plus and earth cables that will connect the offshore wind areas to converter stations in the Sloe industrial zone.
At the beginning of 2025, TenneT and the Noordzeker consortium, developer of the 2 GW IJmuiden Ver Alpha offshore wind farm, signed a grid realisation agreement for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha offshore grid connection, confirming Noordzeker’s contracted access to TenneT’s 2 GW HVDC transmission system linking the wind farm area to the onshore grid at Sloegebied in Zeeland.
On 15 December 2025, DEME awarded Oceanteam a contract to supply, mobilise and operate a complete cable‑lay tensioner spread and control system on a rental basis to support inshore installation of power and fibre‑optic cables in the Veerse Meer for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 grid connection programme, with Oceanteam equipment and operators working alongside DEME on simultaneous lay‑and‑bury operations.
On 21 August 2025, TenneT commenced horizontal directional drilling (HDD) operations beneath the Veerse Gatdam in Kamperland, Zeeland, as an onshore preparatory works activity for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha (and parallel Nederwiek 1) offshore grid connection. The drilling campaign created seven underground passages that will subsequently house protective pipes for the 525 kV HVDC electricity cables being installed between the offshore converter platforms in the North Sea and the onshore converter station in the Sloegebied at Borssele. TenneT described the Veerse Gatdam HDD as a crucial step in constructing the underground links that will bring offshore wind power ashore, because the Veerse Gatdam is a sensitive dam structure separating the Veerse Meer from the sea that must be crossed by the cable route without surface disruption. The HDD drilling under the Veerse Gatdam is preparatory ducting work: it establishes the conduit infrastructure into which the power cables will be pulled during subsequent onshore cable installation campaigns from 2026 onwards. Classified as onshore_site_preparation (not main onshore construction) because it is a discrete long-lead HDD conduit-creation activity performed ahead of the main cable installation campaign rather than the start of the cable pulling itself.
On 30 July 2025, Prysmian awarded Next Geosolutions (NextGeo) a contract to perform export cable route surveys for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 offshore wind sites, including geophysical and UXO surveys and related route preparation between 2026 and 2027 to support final design and installation of the export cables linking the projects to the onshore grid at Sloegebied in Zeeland.
Offshore Independents is engaged by DEME and Prysmian on the IJmuiden Ver Alpha export cable project for 2024–2025, providing team lead cable installation engineering services for the 126 km offshore section of the export cable bundle connecting the Borssele onshore station to the IJmuiden Ver Alpha offshore substation, including preparation of installation method statements, procedures, and technical interfacing with TenneT, Prysmian and subcontractors.
In early August 2024, TenneT began onshore construction for the Net op zee IJmuiden Ver Alpha grid connection at Borssele by driving the first foundation pile for the onshore converter station into the ground, officially marking the start of the first 2 GW connection. The converter station at Borssele forms a key part of the underground high-voltage link that will transport offshore wind power from IJmuiden Ver Alpha to the existing onshore grid.
Prysmian awarded DEME two major contracts for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 offshore grid systems covering engineering and installation of the 525 kV HVDC cable systems, including two 12 km sections in the Veerse Meer lake and 126 km offshore, as well as route preparation, surveys, landfalls, rock placement, and associated marine works for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha export cable connection to Zeeland.
In a Dutch government and TenneT presentation dated 8 June 2023, cable routes for several offshore wind zones, including IJmuiden Ver, are labelled as "under investigation", indicating that by this date route studies for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha offshore grid connection towards its onshore landing in Zeeland were actively underway.
On 30 March 2023, TenneT signed the landmark ~EUR 13 billion Framework Agreement with the Hitachi Energy / Petrofac consortium covering six 2 GW offshore grid connection projects (IJmuiden Ver Alpha, Nederwiek 1, Doordewind 1, Doordewind 2, Nederwiek 3, and LanWin5). Per Hitachi Energy's 30 March 2023 press release, "the first contract under the framework, for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha project, was awarded with immediate effect", firmly selecting the consortium for that project. Hitachi Energy supplies HVDC Light converter technology (2 GW, 525 kV) for the offshore converter platform and onshore converter station at Borssele. Petrofac was originally the EPCI partner for platform delivery; its scope was subsequently terminated by TenneT on 22 October 2025 and transferred to Larsen & Toubro (see separate role/event records).
On 3 March 2023, TenneT selected Prysmian as the cable supplier for the IJmuiden Ver Alpha and Nederwiek 1 offshore grid connections under its 2 GW programme, covering 525 kV XLPE HVDC export cable EPCI.
In May 2022, the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate (EZK), coordinating via Bureau Energieprojecten at RVO under the Rijkscoördinatieregeling, adopted the Rijksinpassingsplan "Net op zee IJmuiden Ver Alpha" fase 1 together with the coordinated package of uitvoeringsbesluiten (execution permits) on 25 May 2022. This project-level decision authorises TenneT to develop, construct, operate and maintain the IJmuiden Ver Alpha 2 GW, 525 kV HVDC offshore grid connection between the IJmuiden Ver offshore wind zone in the North Sea and the onshore high-voltage substation at Borssele / Sloegebied in Zeeland, including the offshore converter platform, the subsea and onshore export cable corridor running via the Veerse Meer, and the onshore converter station at Nieuwdorp. The coordinated package encompassed the omgevingsvergunning for the converter station (Gemeente Borsele), the Wet natuurbescherming (Wnb) permit dated 25 May 2022 (Ministerie van LNV) for Natura 2000 impact mitigation, the watervergunning from Rijkswaterstaat Zee en Delta for the offshore and marine sections, the watervergunning from Waterschap Scheldestromen for inland crossings, and a Spoorwegwet permit from ProRail for rail crossings. Fase 2 (supplementary Gemeente Borsele permits) and Fase 3 (Nota van Antwoord, May 2025) are follow-on decisions; May 2022 is the headline planning-consent date providing the legal basis for construction.
Showing historic events only. Subscribe for the full timeline including projected milestones.