“Dalekovod has now finished laying the current power lines around the plant area, and around 6 km of new access road to the station plot is ready. The road was constructed under the management of Bjerkreim Vind. Fibre optic cable from the central grid network has been run south to Kjelland Transformer Station, and a local power supply has been established to the area. We are actually a couple of weeks ahead of schedule for starting the groundworks,” says Even Vandbakk, Project Manager.
The project is being run as a joint venture with Lyse Elnett, and the area is now to be readied for the control building and storage facilities, transformers, control plant and switchgear installations. This will cover the needs of both parties, and even feature some reserve capacity for future use. “We are on course with our work, and according to the timetable the station is to be completed in summer 2019, when it will start receiving power from the wind farms that are to be established in the area,” adds Even Vandbakk.
Bjerkreim has excellent conditions for wind power, and several developers will be establishing wind farms in the region. A new sub station needs to be built to transport the renewable power from the wind farms to cities and end users. The cost of the new station is estimated at NOK 500–540 million. “We are committed to ensuring that the development is carried out in a safe, cost-effective and sustainable manner,” concludes Even Vandbakk.