The Offshore Wind Farm, MERKUR Offshore is located in the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the North Sea, approximately 45 km north of Borkum Island in the north-eastern part of the specified zone for offshore wind farms. The project site covers an area of 47 km² in total. Merkur Offshore will be equipped with 66 wind energy converters of GE’s offshore wind turbine “Haliade 150” with nominal power of 6 MW each. The hub height of a single turbine is more than 100 m above water level and the innovative gearless 6 MW machine is equipped with one of the largest rotors in the wind industry covering an area equivalent to three football fields with its diameter of 150 m.
Our mission is to support the creation of clean and sustainable energy. We built 66 GE Haliade 6MW turbines allowing approximately 500,000 households to be supplied with green energy.
During construction and operation our highest priority is the health and safety of all project members. We live by our credo: Stop, Review, Plan, then Do!
With the same meticulous care, we protect the environment at all work levels and at any phase of the project.
The Merkur Offshore team, located in Hamburg, Germany, is directly embedded in the company.
Originally financed in August 2016 Merkur Offshore GmbH is a joint venture owned by APG and TRIG who invested into the project after its successful completion in July 2019. The investment transaction finally completed in May 2020.
Project’s share
The shares are divided between the shareholders as follows:
| APG | 64.3% |
| TRIG | 35.7% |
more about APG
APG Asset Management N.V. (“APG AM”) is the wholly owned asset management subsidiary of APG Group, responsible for investing funds on behalf of APG Group’s Dutch pension fund clients. APG AM manages approximately € 533 billion (February 2020) in pension assets, and works for approximately 22,000 employers, providing the pension for one in five families in the Netherlands (about 4.7 million participants). APG AM has offices in Heerlen, Amsterdam, Brussels, New York and Hong Kong, and has been an active infrastructure investor since 2004, having invested approximately € 15 billion to date and managing 35 direct stakes in portfolio companies.
APG Group is the largest pension provider in the Netherlands. Its approximately 3,000 employees provide executive consultancy, asset management, pension administration, pension communication and employer services. APG Group performs these services on behalf of (pension) funds and employers in the sectors of education, government, construction, cleaning and window cleaning, housing associations, energy and utility companies, sheltered employment organizations and medical specialists.
Further information about APG is available at www.apg.nl/en.
more about TRIG
The Renewables Infrastructure Group is a leading London-listed renewable energy infrastructure investment company. TRIG seeks to provide shareholders with an attractive long-term, income-based return with a positive correlation to inflation by focusing on strong cash generation across a diversified portfolio of predominantly operating projects.
TRIG is invested in a portfolio of over 70 wind, solar and battery storage projects with aggregate net generating capacity of over 1.6GW. TRIG is seeking further suitable investment opportunities which fit its stated Investment Policy.
Further details can be found on TRIG’s website at www.trig-ltd.com.
During operation, the scope of works consist mainly in maintenance tasks, which are performed by following contractors:
more about GE Renewable Energy
After the acquisition of Alstom’s energy businesses (Alstom Power and Alstom Grid) by General Electric, Alstom’s wind business was transferred to General Electric (GE) in September 2015. Alstom’s (now GE’s) wind turbine designed for offshore operations is the “Haliade150-6MW”.
Onshore and offshore prototypes of the “Haliade” were installed in 2012 and 2013, followed by issuing of the type certificate in December 2014. In 2016, GE installed and tested one turbine at Østerild, Denmark, and America’s first offshore wind farm at Block Island off the coast of Rhode Island, which has a capacity of 30 MW.
For the Merkur Offshore project, GE Renewables delivered 66 turbines with a nominal output of 396 MW per hour.
more about DEME
more about EWE
EWE Offshore Service & Solutions has been an independent service provider in the European offshore wind market since 2012. As a reliable partner, EWE OSS advises and supports customers in offshore wind farm projects and offers solutions with the EWE Group’s proven 360° experience. An interdisciplinary team of over 100 offshore specialists and with operational experience at home and abroad supports the offshore projects during the entire implementation – from the planning phase to operational management.
EWE OSS has been involved in the Merkur Project since the commissioning phase and is now providing Substation Service & Maintenance, 24/7 windfarm monitoring, marine coordination, and operational management services such as campaign planning and HSE management support.
more about mh²
mh2 offshore GmbH is an owner-operated service company focussing on service and maintenance of offshore Steel structures. Based in northern Germany between the cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven, mh2 is well known in the German offshore wind industry for safe and client-oriented offshore works. The wide range of offered services comprise inspections, NDT testing, modification and repair works of offshore steel structures.
Providing quality inspections during the fabrication of Merkur’s Transition Pieces, mh2 is now taking care of all service and maintenance tasks for the TP foundation structures above the water line.