NORTH-EAST subsea firm JDR Cables has agreed a major deal to supply power cables to Taiwan’s first offshore wind farm.

The deal will see JDR supply 50km (31 miles) of cables to the already operational Formosa 1 wind farm to add another 20 offshore turbines to the existing two, taking total capacity to from 8MW to 210MW.

Beginning work towards the end of this year at its facility in Hartlepool, JDR will make 21km (13 miles) of inter-array cable, 13km of export cable and a further 16km of land cable to transmit power from the shore to the local substation.

Richard Turner, chief executive at JDR, said: “Our customers are our partners – we work collaboratively to deliver reliable solutions for even the most challenging projects. Jan De Nul is an established offshore installation contractor with over 20 years’ experience in Taiwan, so we’re thrilled to be working with them to deliver our first project there.”

JDR will also provide 26 offshore and 8 onshore technicians to provide cable installation support, cable accessory fitment and post-installation testing services, and will supply a range of accessories including the cable protection systems.

Wouter Vermeersch, Manager Offshore Cables at Jan De Nul Group, says: “We needed a strong partner with a proven track record for manufacturing and supplying subsea and land cables. Every element of this project requires quality at every stage and delivery on time.”

Mr Turner added: “Taiwan is one of the most exciting and ambitious emerging markets for renewable energy with a strong committed pipeline of offshore wind projects. At JDR our strategy has been to build knowledge and experience locally and export that globally, so every market we enter and every project we deliver has the same dedication to quality. We’re thrilled to be bringing our people and technology to Taiwan and making to Formosa a success.”