Bosses at a north-east subsea technology specialist are hoping its biggest contract will lead to similar work on renewable-energy schemes across Europe.
Banchory-based Ecosse Subsea Systems has just completed a £4.7million boulder clearing and pre-lay trenching project which it claims is one of the most successful ever conducted for the wind-energy sector.
As subcontractor to Siem Offshore Contractors, Ecosse worked on the boulder clearing and trenching campaign over a 56-mile route for the EnBW Baltic 2 offshore windfarm project.
The project was delivered on schedule and on budget, and now the firm is looking to secure a frame agreement with Siem for similar work elsewhere on the continent.
Ecosse managing director Mike Wilson said: “We created a lot of firsts on EnBW Baltic 2.
“It was our largest contract to date, our first non-UK trenching workscope and our first project for a German offshore windfarm project.”
EnBW Baltic 2 is an 80-turbine development about 20 miles north of Rugen island in the German exclusive economic zone of the Baltic Sea, and is owned by the German utility EnBW.
Several thousand boulders – some more than 13feet tall – were cleared from the cable routes, with Ecosse making 260 individual passes in varying and sometimes challenging soil conditions.
The work started in Gdansk, Poland, with Ecosse transporting its SCAR ploughing technology by road from Aberdeen. Mr Wilson said: “It couldn’t have gone better and our client is now convinced that our zero-risk pre-trenching option, where the hard work is done before the cable is present, is the future for cable installation.
“We are hopeful that following the success of EnBW Baltic 2 we will secure a frame agreement for boulder-clearing and pre-lay trenching services for Siem Offshore Contractors, who are tendering on a range of renewables schemes.”