The Winter 2023/24 newsletter for the Awel y Môr windfarm is available from the Awel y Môr website here. The newsletter provides an update on consenting, site investigations, and also the work that the project team are carrying out to engage with local schools about careers in the offshore renewabe energy sector. A brief summary of the key information relevant to mariners is provided below.
Consent granted by Natural Resources Wales
In November 2023 the Marine Licences for the Awel y Môr Offshore Windfarm were issued by Natural Resources Wales. This means that the Windfarm now has all of the consents and licences it requires.
During 2024 the Awel y Môr Offshore Windfarm team will be making plans for construction to start on the windfarm in 2025. Offshore site investigations (detailed below) are already underway, and archaeological investigations on land are due to begin in 2024 prior to construction of the onshore substation which is due to start in 2025.
Offshore Site Investigations: November 2023 and into 2024
At the end of November the Seafox 7 jack-up barge departed Holyhead to start offshore site investigations. The barge will take borehole samples from the seabed that will provide the project team with a detailed understanding of the geology of the proposed array area. This survey will continue into 2024. A Notice to Mariners was issued at the end of October 2023, and is summarised here. Information about the Seafox 7 and its support vessels are provided below, including a link to its present location on the MarineTraffic website:-
- Seafox 7: drilling vessel | MMSI 235065812 | Call sign 2BGC6
- Elisa: Support vessel / tug | MMSI 236745000 | Call sign PBZP
- Fairplay 32: Support vessel / tug | MMSI 210447000 | Call sign 5BAM6
- MCS Boreas: Crew Transfer Vessel | MMSI 235096501 | Call sign 2GDR8
Operations will be conducted on a 24 hour basis. A continuous listening watch will be conducted on VHF Channel 16.
Other vessels are requested to keep their distance, maintaining at least a 500m distance.
About the proposed windfarm
The Awel y Môr Offshore Wind Farm would be built around six miles off the North Wales coast, to the west of the existing Gwynt y Môr windfarm. Awel y Môr would be connected to the National Grid by an export cable coming ashore between Rhyl and Prestatyn. The proposed windfarm would include up to 50 wind turbines. It could generate enough power for up to half a million homes, and it will be the largest renewable energy investment in Wales in this decade. Full project details and maps of the windfarm location are available at the project website awelymor.cymru.