NKT has completed a 38-day turnkey repair on one of the 220 kV export cables at the 588 MW Beatrice offshore wind farm in Scotland, the company said on Wednesday.
The cable fault, discovered in April, reduced the project’s export capacity by 50%, triggering a coordinated response led by NKT together with Transmission Capital Partners and asset operator SSE Renewables on behalf of Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Ltd. “The fault in April cut the project’s export capacity by 50%,” NKT said.
According to the company, the damaged export line—one it did not manufacture—was repaired using two adaptive rigid sea joints that were mobilised from stock within days. Bruce Turner, asset manager at Transmission Capital Partners, said: “A key enabler for the rapid repair was NKT’s ability to provide the adaptive rigid sea joints directly off the shelf, allowing us to use NKT repair services on this asset expediting the repair program in advance of other options available to us.”
NKT said its cable-handling system allowed the repair to be executed from the vessel North Sea Giant, which was mobilised in Eemshaven within six days and later loaded with spare cable.
Alanna Benians, general manager for Beatrice at SSE Renewables, said: “It was a privilege to be part of a project team that successfully delivered such a complex repair within an exceptionally short timeframe, finalising the repair several months earlier than alternative deployable repair solutions, and substantially minimising downtime and significantly reducing energy and revenue losses.”
NKT said the export cable was re-energised by the end of July—38 days after contract signing—restoring full transmission capability. Axel Barnekow Widmark, EVP for service and installation at NKT, said: “NKT’s comprehensive service portfolio and innovative technologies enabled a significantly accelerated repair process. We are proud to have supported the Beatrice offshore wind farm in returning the export system to full operation swiftly.”
Beatrice uses two 70 km export cables and supplies electricity to about 450,000 homes, according to the developer.
