On the Polish sector of the Baltic Sea, a further – the third to date – offshore wind farm installation campaign is now getting under way. Equinor and Polenergia are commencing the first offshore works in connection with the Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3 projects.

The developers have confirmed the launch of the offshore installation campaign. In the coming months, as part of the construction of the Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3 offshore wind farms, 100 monopile foundations will be installed, followed by an equal number of transition pieces, together with components of the offshore substations, subsea export and inter-array cables, and associated offshore infrastructure.

Initial activities began in January. Specialist vessels are currently undertaking rock placement operations, depositing a suitably graded rock layer on the seabed. This scour protection is designed to prevent seabed erosion caused by currents and wave action, while also protecting and stabilising export and inter-array cable bundles, particularly in areas exposed to hydrodynamic forces or vessel traffic.

The works are being executed by Van Oord, deploying four dynamically positioned vessels capable of placing rock at significant water depths. This enables rock dumping to be carried out with an accuracy of within several tens of centimetres, irrespective of prevailing metocean conditions. According to the investors, more than one million tonnes of rock – equivalent to approximately 400,000 cubic metres of material – will be installed on the Baltic seabed. The rock is being sourced from quarries in Norway.

Later in the year, during the spring season, transportation and installation of the monopiles, transition pieces and selected components of the two offshore substations will commence. The 153-metre heavy-lift crane vessel Thialf will be deployed for foundation installation operations, with individual components delivered to site by feeder vessels. In their statement, the developers emphasised that Thialf is a proven asset, repeatedly utilised by Equinor in offshore projects worldwide. Offshore installation works are scheduled to continue for several months. In total, more than 20 vessels are expected to be engaged in the construction of Bałtyk 2 and Bałtyk 3 during 2026.

In the subsequent phases, installation of export and inter-array cables, as well as corrosion protection systems, will be undertaken. According to Equinor and Polenergia, Equinor’s operations and maintenance base in Łeba is also scheduled for completion this year.