Arup wins €1.5 million integrated ground model contract for Dutch OW zone

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) has awarded Arup B.V. the contract for the development of an integrated ground model (IGM) and a geotechnical interpretative report for the Nederwiek Zuid Wind Farm Zone (NWWFZ) in the Netherlands.

The contract, with a value of around €1.5 million (excluding VAT), was awarded following a tender issued in February.

The IGM will be made based on the results of the geophysical work that is currently ongoing in the NWWFZ.

The IGM will then be used as input for the geotechnical campaign which will validate the geological model resulting from the geophysical investigation and confirm the soil engineering properties required by developers to progress with their geotechnical foundation designs and other general design and installation requirements for the wind farm, as well as those relating to cable installation, according to the contract award notice.

The Nederwiek zone, located 90 kilometres off the west coast of the Netherlands, is divided into two areas, Nederwiek Zuid & Noord (North and South), and three project sites: the 2 GW Nederwiek Zuid I, the 2 GW Nederwiek Noord II, and the 2 GW Nederwiek Noord III.

The Nederwiek Zuid I is scheduled to be auctioned off in the second quarter of 2025 and is expected to come online in 2030.

Nederwiek Noord II and III are planned to be auctioned off in 2026 and are scheduled for commissioning in 2030 and 2031, respectively.

A couple of months ago, RVO invited tenders for IGMs and geotechnical interpretative reports for the Nederwiek Noord and Hollandse Kust West VIII offshore wind farm zones.