First Turbine Blade for Sofia Offshore Wind Farm Sees the Light of Day
RWE has unveiled the first 108-meter turbine blade, made at the Siemens Gamesa factory in Hull, which will form part of 100 offshore wind turbines, each rated at 14 MW, set for operation at Sofia offshore wind farm.
On target for completion towards the end of 2026, the 1.4 GW Sofia offshore wind farm will be capable of generating enough renewable electricity to power the equivalent of approximately 1.2 million typical UK homes once fully operational.
Siemens Energy will manufacture, install and commission all 100 of the SG 14‑222 DD turbines. Each turbine will stand 252 meters tall, have 108-meter-long turbine blades and a 222-meter rotor diameter.
The total size of the wind farm will be 593 km2, approximately the size of the Isle of Man.
RWE has also confirmed that working with Siemens Gamesa, it will deploy recyclable blades on 44 of 100 turbines – a record 132 individual blades.
This follows the successful installation of recyclable blades at RWE’s Kaskasi Offshore Wind Farm off the German island Heligoland.
The Sofia offshore wind farm project is located on Dogger Bank in the central North Sea, 195 km off the north east coast of England. Offshore installation began earlier in 2024.
Operations and maintenance activities for Sofia will be managed from RWE’s new offshore wind operations base, the Grimsby Hub, which also services RWE’s Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm.
RWE is also developing in the region its two Dogger Bank South projects which, together, would have a potential installed capacity of around 3 GW.
“To see these impressive turbine blades being produced, ready to be installed at our flagship Sofia offshore wind farm, is a fantastic demonstration of the true value that offshore wind brings to coastal communities, such as Hull,” said Tom Glover, RWE UK Country Chair.
“At our offshore wind blade factory in Hull we’re powering the energy transition. We now employ over 1,300 people at the site, after recruiting more than 600 new employees over the last 12 months. We are proud to be a key supplier to RWE on a number of UK projects, including manufacturing the blades for Sofia. It’s great to have this project underway and unveil the first blade,” added Darren Davidson, Vice President Siemens Energy UK&I.
