Dutch Fugro Awarded Contracts for Geophysical and Geotechnical Site Investigations for TotalEnergies and RWE Offshore Wind Farms

Dutch Fugro has been awarded contracts to conduct geophysical and geotechnical site investigations for the development of TotalEnergies and RWE’s two large-scale offshore wind farms in the German North Sea.

Windbostel Ost and Windbostel West, being developed by a joint venture between RWE and TotalEnergies, will have a combined generating capacity of 4 GW.

Fugro’s site characterisation work will provide essential Geo-data on the seabed and subsurface conditions northwest of Borkum Island. The geophysical surveys will provide initial detailed mapping of the seabed and shallow subsurface layers, identifying potential hazards and informing early design considerations.

The geotechnical investigation will provide data on the seabed’s soil composition and characteristics through in situ testing and sampling.

The combined geotechnical and geophysical data will be crucial for foundation design, structural analysis, cable routing, and risk assessment during the construction and operational phases of the projects, said Fugro.

This contract follows Fugro’s previous geotechnical investigations for the 1.6 GW Nordseecluster project (RWE share: 51%) in Germany and builds upon preliminary geotechnical data acquired by Fugro for the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH).

Development Timeline

In August 2024, RWE secured the rights for the development of two offshore wind projects at the N-9.1 and N-9.2 sites. A couple of months later, TotalEnergies agreed to acquire a 50% stake in Windbostel Ost and Windbostel West.

The sites are located about 110 kilometers northwest of Borkum Island, bordering the Netherlands’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

According to the project’s website, investment decisions are expected to be taken by 2027 for Windbostel Ost and 2028 for Windbostel West.

Subject to the necessary permits and confirmation of grid connection, offshore construction could start in 2029 and 2030, with full commissioning planned for 2031 and 2032, respectively.

Last week, TotalEnergies was selected as the winner of the latest German tender for the N-9.4 offshore wind site in the North Sea.

The area, which can accommodate 1 GW of installed offshore wind capacity, is located in very close proximity to the N-9.1 and N-9.2 sites.