News

Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission Plc and National Grid Electricity Transmission Plc are delivering the Eastern Green Link 2 (EGL 2) Project.

The EGL 2 project will play a vital role in achieving the UK and Scottish governments net zero targets and significantly increase the UK’s capacity for clean, green renewable power.

The survey works for EGL 2 precedes the installation of an electricity transmission link from the East coast of Scotland (Sandford Bay, Peterhead) to the East coast of England (South of Bridlington/ Flamborough Head) due to be completed in 2029.

The EGL 2 marine survey works are being carried out by GeoXYZ.

The area of work, pertaining to this Notice to Mariners (NtM) is illustrated in Figure 1 and Table 1, with the survey vessel contact details for each respective project found in Table 2. Contact details for the project Fisheries Liaison Officers are detailed below. The marine survey activities for EGL 2 are planned to commence from Peterhead, Scotland in December 2023 and continue in Scottish waters until approximately February 2024 before working south along the route shown in Figure 1 to Bridlington.

It is anticipated that the survey activities will commence from approximately 18th December 2023 and are due to be completed by the end of April 2024, subject to weather. The offshore works are to be conducted within the area shown by Figure 1 and coordinates detailed in Table 1.

The works consist of a detailed geophysical survey for the purposes of identifying potential unexploded ordnance. There are no intrusive works planned nor will there be any unexploded ordnance investigation or detonation works. The vessel will be towing equipment close to the seabed and will have restrictive maneuverability.

All vessels are requested to pass at a safe speed and distance, approximately 500 metres where possible, (COLREGs Rule 16 & 18) from the areas identified during marine survey operations. The survey vessel will be restricted in her ability to manoeuver and shall deploy towed sensors during geophysical survey operations only. The survey vessels will monitor VHF Channel 16 at all times. Mobile contacts for the vessels are listed at the end of this NtM.

Marker buoys repair works

The scope of work includes the repair of unlit South Cardinal MW4, and the temporary removal of Special Mark MW1 from Site 1 to allow repairs of the data sensors. All marker buoys have been inspected, MW4 light replaced and MW1 has been re-deployed on Site.  

Mariners are advised Stromar Offshore Wind Farm are undertaking nearshore water sampling during week commencing 11 December 2023 in the Moray Firth near Fraserburgh, Scotland. The survey works are expected to take between one and two days. The survey vessel Seren Las will attend to a number of sampling stations along a single transect.

St Andrews University Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) is conducting scientific research in the Morlais Demonstration Zone (MDZ). SMRU wishes to install equipment (Passive Acoustic Monitoring or PAM) on the seabed to gather acoustic data. This document provides information on the planned PAM deployments for the local fishing industry and other sea users in the area.

From around the 12th December 2023 for a period of approx.14 days (weather permitting), the Forth Warrior will service and inspect the installed buoyage within the Sofia Offshore Wind Farm Array and also within the Export Cable Route from Nearshore Marske by The Sea out to the SOWF Array itself.

The tables above above provide a summary of the locations where the Forth Warrior shall be operating during the campaign.

The Met-ocean Buoys in position at KP2 & KP130 on the Export Cable Route will be permanently recovered.

There will also be an additional three Met-ocean buoys installed within the Sofia Offshore Windfarm Array as outlined above.

The Forth Warrior will be working daylight hours only and shall be monitoring VHF 16 during the scope of the works and shall also be exhibiting the correct day shapes and night lights for a vessel restricted in ability to manoeuvre.

***NAVIGATIONAL WARNINGS 11th Sept 2023 and 21st October 2023***

Mariners are advised that Met Ocean Buoys at KP2 (Position 54° 36.508N x 000° 00.175W) and KP40 (Position: 54° 40.524' N x 000° 26.735' W) have been reported as off station.

The Metocean Buoys at KP2 and KP40 have been successfully recovered and are now in Hartlepool awaiting inspection and then reinstatement (date TBC).

As it is currently unknown if the mooring is attached to these buoys, please avoid the KP2 and KP40 coordinates highlighted within the table above by at least 100m until further notice.

Mariners are requested to refrain from entering and transiting through the construction area as demarcated by these demarcation buoys.

The table below provides a summary of each Cardinal and Special Mark Buoy deployed at the SOWF array, including target coordinates in WGS84 Degrees Decimal Minutes and a description of top mark and lantern characteristics. The Demarcation Buoys will be deployed for a period of approximately three years.  

The table below provides a summary of the Met-ocean Buoys deployed at the SOWF Array.

The table below provides a summary of the Met-ocean Buoys deployed alone the SOWF export cable route.

The post-lay burial (PLB) vessel “Normand Pacific” will be present for the entire scope of works. The Normand Pacific will transit from Middlesborough Support Depot and remain on site for 24hr operations. The PLB vessel will make passage to and from the support depot as required based on operational constraints.

The Normand Pacific will firstly transit to approx. Kilometre Point (KP) 36 to perform post lay burial activities until KP 130, and then will transit to KP 3 to cover the remaining section, KP 3-36. During transit along the cable route the vessel will remain within the exclusion zone.

The PLB will be supported by those guard vessels outlined in the table above.  Guard vessels will remain be onsite 24 hours per day to monitor the export cable until circa Q1 - 2024.

Exclusion zone coordinates for the 2023 post-lay burial works are identified within the table above and remain the same for those during cable lay works as outlined in NtM 11 (rev 02).

The coordinates of the guard vessel locations for the post-lay burial works for Campaign 1 are detailed within the table above and attached NtM.

Please be aware that by virtue of mode of operation and the equipment deployed, the Normand Pacific will at times be Restricted in their Ability to Manoeuvre as defined under COLREGS (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972 and shall be exhibiting the correct day shapes / lights for vessels restricted in ability to manoeuvre.

Mariners are requested to remain where possible 500m from vessels and equipment. Fishing vessels are requested to pass at a safe speed and distance and remain outside of the exclusion area identified. All vessels can be contacted on VHF 16 for further information as required reference proximity/nearby operations etc.

Mariners are advised of the following vessels operating at the Sofia Offshore Wind Farm (SOWF).

The Nordness will joining the campaign later in January 2024 until approximatelty 1st March 2024 and will be transiting to the site from ports located outside of the UK (The Netherlands and Norway).

Two layers (armour & filter) are foreseen to be installed for the scour protection: The armour layer will be installed at all 100 WTG locations and the filter layer will be installed at 88 of the WTG locations.

All Mariners are requested to remain outside the works area are identified within the table above and pass at a safe speed and distance. Mariners should be aware there will be a reduction in navigable depth of up to 9% at all 100 WTG locations following the installation of the scour protection.

Vessel information in relation to these scope of works are outlined below;

The dynamic positioning fall pipe vessel (DPFV) “Rockpiper” will be carrying out the entire scope of works. The Rockpiper will transit to / from Norway during this period. The vessel will be supported by the guard vessels, as outlined below.  Operations are expected to last into March 2024.

Exclusion zone coordinates for the rock placement works are identified within the above table and remain the same for those during cable lay and post-lay cable burial works as outlined in previous NtMs. The table below shows the coordinates of the guard vessel locations for the rock placement works for Campaign 1 (C1).

Please be aware that by virtue of mode of operation and the equipment deployed, the Rockpiper will at times be Restricted in their Ability to Manoeuvre as defined under COLREGS when carrying out the works.

The exact start and finish dates will be dependent on the prevailing weather conditions and work progress.

Mariners are requested to remain where possible 500m from vessels and equipment. Fishing vessels are requested to pass at a safe speed and distance and remain outside of the exclusion area identified. During these works the Rockpiper (DPFV) will have restricted manoeuvrability as it carries out the rock placement works. All vessels can be contacted on VHF 16 for further information as required reference proximity/nearby operations etc.

Please note that rock placement will cause a reduction of navigable depth but this is unlikely to exceed a 10% reduction. The actual positions of rock placement will be updated as part of the as-built information of the project.

The vessel will be monitoring channel VHF 16 and shall also be exhibiting the correct day shapes / lights for vessels restricted in ability to manoeuvre.

Mariners are advised of the following vessels operating at the Sofia Offshore Wind Farm (SOWF).

On the 3rd of June 2023, Fugro deployed two (2) Floating Seawatch LiDAR buoys within the Caledonia Offshore Wind Farm site for the acquisition of Wind and Metocean Data. The two buoys are intended to remain in-situ for a minimum period of 24 months.

*Primary buoy COWF-SWLB080 temporarily replayed by lit buoy during repair (as of 6th December)*

Mariners are advised to maintain a 500 m clearance from the deployed equipment.  Operations were completed by the Fishing vessel ‘MS Elisabeth’.

The buoys will remain in situ until June 2025, the exact removal date will depend on weather and be determined at a later stage. A separate NtM will be issued for the removal activity.

Details on the Seawatch Wind LiDAR (3.0) Buoys including navigational safety features and mooring layout design are provided in the attached NtM (V3). 

Please be advised that Moray Offshore Windfarm (East) Limited (Moray East) will undergo repairs to reinstate the light at the special mark buoy around the remaining subsea structure at the meteorological mast (Met Mast) on the 6th December 2023.

The works to repair the Met Mast Special Mark buoy light will be carried out by the Forth Jouster.

Please be aware that while navigating the area to keep an extra look out for the unlit Met Mast Special marker buoy during the hours of darkness and reduced visibility, until such a time as the buoy is repaired. Please also note that the Met Mast is currently marked by a virtual AtoN.

Please be aware that, during the survey activities, by virtue of its mode of operation the vessel will be Restricted in her Ability to Manoeuvre (RAM) as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972, Rule 3). Masters of vessels are therefore requested to maintain their vessels and gears at a minimum safe passing distance from the vessel of 500 metres when it is undertaking work and showing the appropriate shapes and lights in accordance with COLREGs Rule 27. In order to not compromise the safety of the Vessel, their crew, and their ability to undertake its contracted works, fishermen who have static fishing gears deployed within 500 m from the Met Mast location (see Table 1 and Figure 1) are requested to provide the coordinates of such deployed gears in DMS and details of whether the surface markers used are visible at all states of visibility to Alex Winrow-Griffin (Brown & May Marine) using the contact information below (Section 58 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995). Fishermen who have static gears deployed beyond 12 nm are reminded that static gear must be marked in accordance with Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 404/2011

Mariners are advised that the following vessels are expected to commence operations at the Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm (TKOWF) as outlined within recently issued NtM's. 

The Windcat 22 will replace the Windcat 11 temporarily, whilst the Windcat 11 goes for a refit. A further NtM will be issued once the Windcat 11 returns.

Mariners are advised that the following vessels continue to be active at the Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm (TKOWF) as outlined within previously issued NtM's:

Mariners are advised that all foundations monopiles have been installed and all inter-array and export cables have been installed.

Navigation Warning - 08th January 2021

Mariners are advised that the remnants of a Wave Rider Buoy sinker weight and partial rigging are located within the Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm Construction site at the following location;

53° 30.442N 000° 50.564E

It is advised that the partial rigging could potentially be floating up to 9.7m above the seabed, reducing the navigable safe water in the immediate area to 10m LAT.  Mariners are advised to avoid the indicated position by 250 metres.

Possible Dangers to Navigation - Properties of the polypropylene show that the rope is buoyant, this makes the line sensitive for thruster currents. Taking the site water depth into consideration (19.7m LAT) and the maximum expected height above seabed of the rope 9.7m the line is expected to be floating submerged at approximately -10m LAT. In addition, it is noted that over time sediments will be trapped between the fibres and the heavier rope may finally sink. The polypropylene rope may impose a risk to foul propellers / propulsion of vessels due to the buoyant nature of the rope. As the rope is submerged at a depth of ~-10m LAT the risk is considered minimum for vessels with a shallow draught (<5m) and medium for a vessel with a deeper draught (>5m). Over time sediments will be trapped between the fibres and the heavier rope may finally sink thereby reducing the risk to propellers/propulsion of vessels. The clump weight itself (chain) is expected to have sunk into the seabed and has no significant height above seabed. In addition, the edges of the clump weight are mostly rounded (chain), the risk the clump weigh imposes to fishing activities/gear is therefore considered to be minimal.

Navigation Warning - 16th March 2021

Mariners are advised that two UXO targets have been confirmed within the Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm Array.

Mariners are advised that the two confirmed targets are located within 20 metres water depth (LAT) and a 10 metre radius exclusion zone is required around each target.  The following table provides the coordinates and a description for each target.

The works will be performed in a single campaign, commencing on the 01st September 2023 and continuing until approximately 30th December 2023. The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day. Charts of the DBB Array / DBC Array and Export Cable Route areas including are provided below.

The operations include the relocation and/or removal of subsea obstructions such as boulders and debris by means of a subsea grab mounted on a Utility ROV (UTROV). During operations, the OLYMPIC ELECTRA will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessel will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message. It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 500m separation distance from the Offshore Supply Vessel and pass at reduced speed

Work on the duct and surrounding area will be undertaken by divers connected to diving support vessel C-Odyssey operated by Leask Marine. During diving operations this vessel will be positioned via a four-point anchor mooring spread. For diving vessel moorings, for the avoidance of any fishing gear or buoyed items posing risk of wire entanglement based on anchor positions.

Moray West intends to commence diving works no earlier than 16th of October 2023. This diving campaign is expected to reach completion late November 2023.

The above dates include some estimated/expected weather delays, however, this activity may be subject to further extension of works. Scope of work to include deployment of the diving vessel four-point mooring system to support two HDD duct ends post-cable installation works at nearshore, utilising the diving vessel C-Odyssey (supported by C-Defender vessel) and will remain in place until all nearshore diving works are complete.

Please be aware that, during the diving work activities, by virtue of its mode of operation the Dive vessel C-Odyssey and support vessel C- Defender will be Restricted in her Ability to Manoeuvre (RAM) and will also display appropriate day shapes while diving operations are taking place as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972, Rule 3). Masters of vessels are therefore requested to maintain their vessels and gears at a minimum safe passing distance from the vessel of 500 metres when it is undertaking work and showing the appropriate shapes and lights in accordance with COLREGs Rule 27 In order to not compromise the safety of the C-Odyssey and C- Defender and their crew, and the ability to undertake its contracted works.

The development of the windfarm is made up of several elements - current ongoing elements include:

The Offshore installation vessel, HLV Seaway Strashnov has completed installation of all 95 monopile foundations, within the Dogger Bank A construction area.  

The installed monopiles will be marked with temporary lighting with the following characteristics:

•           Flashing (Fl) Yellow (Y) 2.5 seconds (s)

•           IALA Availability Category 2 (not less than 99.0%)

•           360° visibility – up to two lights per structure may be used to achieve this

•           At least 2 nm range.

The HLV Alfa Lift will continue TP installation in the Dogger Bank construction area.

Following Storm Babet the temporary lighting on all 38 installed monopiles is currently inoperative (NtM LF500013-MIP-DOG-NOT-0026 NtM-DBA Monopiles unlit refers)

Construction Support Activities

The Offshore Construction Support Vessels, VOS Start, Edda Sphynx, Edda Boreas, Grampian Tyne, Grampian Derwent and Norside Cygnus will carry out construction support activities within Dogger Bank A construction site.

The works will be performed in a single campaign, commencing on the 6th of November 2022 and continuing until approximately 30th September 2023. The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day.

IAC Installation and Post-lay Burial Operations

The Cable Lay Vessel Viking Neptun has completed the 2nd Inter Array Cable lay campaign this week. The Cable burial vessel Livingstone will continue to bury the surface laid IA Cables. The Norside Cygnus continueswith Termination and Testing of cables.

During operations, the Livingstone and Norside Cygnus  will be restricted in their ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessels will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message. 

Wind Turbine Generator (WTG) Installation

The Jack-up WTG Installation Vessel, Voltaire, will install wind turbine generators (WTG) within the Dogger Bank A construction area.

The works will commence on the 18th of July 2023, continuing until approximately Q2 2024.  The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day.  A running list of the completed WTG installations and the next locations to be installed is presented in the Installation progress table below.

UPDATE: 34 monopiles remain unlit. Monopiles P41 and P42 are now fitted with a Transition Piece.

P32 and D01 - lights have been replaced. 

During Storm Babet, the temporary navigation lights on all 38 of the MPs were damaged and the lights are inoperative. Table 2 below provides coordinates of the monopile locations where temporary navaids are missing or damaged. Figure 3 shows a monopile without a TP installed and with a temporary navaid in place.

A programme to repair and replace the temporary navigation lights is being undertaken. Once all are restored an update will be published and this NtM witdrawn.

The DBA Guard vessels will broadcast a safety message alerting vessels of this hazard.

All vessels are requested to navigate with particular caution in the vicinity of the Dogger Bank A construction site and where possible are requested to remain outside the construction site boundary

See detailed map on our bulletin website

See detailed map on our bulletin website

The works are anticipated to commence on 26 November 2023, and the duration of the works is forecasted to be completed by mid/ end January 2024. The exact duration and completion date will depend on the weather and progress of the works

The ‘Edda Fjord’ vessel is expected to arrive on site circa 10th December 2023 to support ‘Nexans Skagerrak’ vessel to complete offshore export cable (OEC) trenching works over pre-laid offshore export cables OEC-2 and OEC-1. The overall duration is expected to be approximately 2 months.

Any sections of the routes where the cables require remedial rock protection will be performed during a separate remedial campaign. This will be subject to a separate NtM when details on remedial campaign(s) are known. 

The ‘Nexans Skagerrak’ vessel is expected to arrive on site on 13rd October 2023 to complete offshore export cable (OEC) installation works including cable pull in at landfall, cable lay, repair joint, cable wet storage on OEC2 and cable trenching works on OEC2 and OEC1. The overall duration is expected to be approximately 3 months. The ‘Nexans Aurora’ vessel is expected to arrive on site on 1 st November 2023 to complete cable installation works including cable pull in at landfall, cable lay, cable wet storage on OEC1. The overall duration is expected to be approximately 1 month.

Please be aware that, during the Cable lay and trenching work activities, by virtue of its mode of operation the ‘Nexans Skagerrak’ and ‘Nexans Aurora’ vessels will be Restricted in their Ability to Manoeuvre (RAM) and will also display appropriate day shapes while conducting Cable lay and trenching operations are taking place as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972, Rule 3)

Geophysical surveys utilising towed sensors, used in offshore areas and coastal sea waters between Aldeburgh, Suffolk and Pegwell Bay, Ramsgate, Kent.  The survey is being undertaken on behalf of National Grid’s Sea Link Project, a proposed HVDC electricity transmission connection between the two locations.  The geophysical survey work will be carried out by Next Geosolutions using survey vessels Shore Presence and Shore Possibility.  Forecasted survey start dates for each area are shown below and are subject to change. 

• Area 1 – 1st November 2023 

• Area 2 – 10th November 2023 

• Area 3 – 1st December 2023 

• Area 4 – 8th December 2023 

• Area 5 – 15th December 2023 

Surveys are expected to be completed by early January 2024.  All vessels shall pass at a safe speed and distance, whilst fishing vessels are asked to remain at a safe distance (approximately 500 metres where possible) (COLREGs Rule 16 & 18) from the areas identified during marine survey operations. The aforementioned survey vessels will be restricted in her ability to manoeuvre and shall deploy towed sensors during geophysical survey operations only. The survey vessels will monitor VHF Channel 16 at all times. Mobile contacts for the vessels are listed at the end of this NtM. 

See detailed map on our bulletin website

The 2 Export Cables & 1 Fibre Optic Cable (all bundled) have been installed into the HDD ducts at Landfall (Marske by The Sea). 

Guard vessels will remain be onsite 24 hours per day to monitor the export cable until circa Q1- 2024.

Exclusion zone coordinates for 2023 cable pull-in and cable lay works are detailed within the table above and attached Notice to Mariners (NtM).

The coordinates of the guard vessel locations for the cable pull-in and cable lay works for Campaign 1 are detailed within the table above and attached NtM.

Mariners are requested to remain where possible 500m from the vessels and leave a wide berth during the installation operations. Fishing vessels are requested to pass at a safe speed and distance and remain outside of the exclusion area identified.

Vessels will be monitoring VHF 16 during the scope of the works and shall also be exhibiting the correct day shapes/ lights and flag for vessels engaged in diving operations and restricted in ability to manoeuvre.

Special Marker Buoys (SMB) will be in place to mark the HDD works area and will remain in place until completion of the export cable landing activities. The locations of these SMBs are detailed in the above table and attached NtM.

***Within the working area there may be a temporary reduction in navigable depth up to 2m due to excavated material being placed in spoil heaps***

***Please note that the Ocean Energy (Multicat) has recovered 3 of the 4 (A / B / D) anchors from the seabed nearshore HDD Pits and only one anchor remains in situ on the seabed at the HDD Pit in position “C”***

The Ocean Energy (Multicat) may attempt to recover the remaining anchor (C) from the seabed nearshore HDD Pits.

Mariners are advised of the following vessels commencing operations at Sofia Offshore Wind Farm (SOWF).

The table below also provides the position and description of any equipment/asset/item that will remain in place following demobilisation of the Ievoli Ivory.

A marine vessel traffic survey is due to be undertaken for the proposed Ayre Offshore Windfarm project. The survey will be undertaken from one survey vessel, KMS Karelle, and will involve the collection of data of detected vessels and marine users through use of onboard radar, AIS and visual survey methods.

The survey will collect data within a proposed vessel roaming area within the project array area. 

The survey vessel will roam and/or remain nominally static within the area for approximately 14 days depending on weather conditions. The survey may be extended beyond 14 days depending on weather conditions, at which point further notification will be provided. Dates may be subject to change. The survey vessel will operate on a 24hr basis and display appropriate navigational lights at all times during operations.

Marine operations will commence no earlier than Thursday 23rd November, for a duration of approximately three weeks. Operations will be conducted from the vessel Roman Rebel. During operations the Roman Rebel will deploy sampling and video recording equipment to the seabed. The vessel will be operating in DP Mode.

The operation will be carried out continuously, 24 hours a day. The vessel will display the appropriate day shapes/signals, and during reduced visibility, the appropriate lights required by the IRPCS. Additionally, the vessel will actively transmit an AIS signal. A continuous listening watch will be maintained on VHF Channel’s 16, 14 and DSC. The requested safety zone around the vessel while working is 1 nm, and is at the discretion of the Captain.

Vessel Contact Details Roman Rebel Vessel Call Sign: 2ICA5 MMSI: 235108458 IMO: 9714824 Owner: Green Rebel - 021 245 5222 Vessel email: roman.rebel@greenrebel.ie Vessel Phone: +353 860607349.

Coordinates of survey area are detailed below.

Mariners are advised that CampionWind Limited (a 50/50 Joint Venture company between ScottishPower Renewables UK Limited and Shell New Energies Holding Limited) will be extending the mobilisation of one of its FLiDAR Buoys (SWLB060) as part of its metocean Campaign to the 30th September 2024.

The FLiDAR Buoy will be monitored remotely so that in the event of a mooring failure, a team can be mobilised to carry out recovery and re-deployment activities. The Seawatch FLiDAR Buoy is yellow in colour and will exhibit a navigation light according to IALA standards: five (5) flashes at one (1) Hertz, every twenty (20) seconds (Fl (5) Y 20s). The ranges for the light on the Buoy is 5 nautical miles.

The FLiDAR Buoys location is outlined below and displayed within the Notice to Mariners (provided as an attachment to this notice). This location is within the CampionWind offshore wind farm array area, off the east coast of Scotland.

CampionWind will not seek to submit an updated AIS licence to support this extended mobilisation as the existing AIS Licence (1280449/3) is valid until September 2027.

The scope of work includes the installation of 2x J-Tube cages (JTC), 2x OSP-TPs and 2x Topsides. The installation of the offshore substations will be carried out with the dynamically positioned installation vessels Bokalift1.   

Please be aware that, during the offshore substation installation works, the Bokalift 1, by virtue of its mode of operation the vessel, will be Restricted in its Ability to Manoeuvre (RAM). Masters of vessels are requested to maintain their vessels and gears at a minimum safe passing distance from the vessel of 500 meters when it is undertaking work and showing the appropriate shapes and lights in accordance with COLREGs Rule 27 (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972, Rule 3).

The Offshore Support vessels Olympic Taurus and Norside Cygnus will continue with pull in preparation works and the terminations and testing works until approximately 31st of December 2023. The VIKING NEPTUN will commence the 2nd phase of cable lay works on the 1st of November 2023. The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day. A chart of the DBA cable array area is provided below.

The walk to work vessel will deploy and pick up tower teams on the different foundations to support the cable pull in and the cable installation finalization works. The cable lay vessel will deploy the inter array cable onto the seabed through her dedicated deck spread.

During operations, the Olympic Taurus, Norside Cygnus and VIKING NEPTUN will be restricted in their ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessel will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message. It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 1.5Nm separation distance from the vessels and pass at reduced speed. Fishing gear or other equipment with seabed intervention should not be deployed when approaching the working corridor.

The works  will commenced on the 26th of September 2022, continuing until approximately Q1 2024 The works will be continuous 24 hours a day.  A running list of the next locations to be installed and completed foundation locations are presented in the Weekly Notice of Operations.

The installed monopiles are marked with temporary lighting with the following characteristics:

•           Flashing (Fl) Yellow (Y) 2.5 seconds (s)

•           IALA Availability Category 2 (not less than 99.0%)

•           360° visibility – up to two lights per structure may be used to achieve this

•           At least 2 nm range.

During operations, the HLV Seaway Strashnov and the Seaway Alfa Lift will be restricted in ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessels will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message.

During operations, a Statutory Safety zone of 500m radius will be in place around the HLV Seaway Strashnov and the Seaway Alfa Lift during the installation of foundations.  The safety zones will be monitored by a guard vessel. The primary response will be to warn passing traffic of the ongoing works and any active safety zones, and to alert any vessels where an infringement may occur or has occurred.

This campaign will commence on the 26th of November 2023 and continue until approximately 31st of December 2023. The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day. Charts of the DBA array area are provided below.

The operations include the post lay burial operations for part of the array cable routes, by means of jetting and mechanical cutting in order to protect the inter-array cables.

During operations, the Livingstone will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessel will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message. 

It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 1.5Nm separation distance from the TSV and pass at reduced speed. Fishing gear or other equipment with seabed intervention should not be deployed when approaching the working corridor.

Autonomous Recording Units (ARUs) will be deployed prior to and during the monopile installation works on seabed moorings, at approximately 750m and 2km from the monopile installation locations. A maximum of eight ARUs will be deployed at once, with five being collected and redeployed elsewhere where needed. There will be a total of 13 ARU deployment locations.

FLOATING LIDAR BUOY The floating LiDAR buoys deployed at sites 1 and 3 record meteorological data and are anchored to the seabed by means of a mooring chain and a ground weight. The buoy has dimensions of 4m x 4m, and when deployed the tallest mast on the buoy sits approx. 4m above the water line. The lantern has a flash sequence Fl (5) Y 20s. Please maintain a 500m exclusion around each buoy.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

Eastern Green Link 3 is a HVDC electricity transmission interconnector between Scotland and England, a joint venture between National Grid and Scottish & Southern Electricity Transmission (SSEN).

Eastern Green Link 4 is a HVDC electricity transmission interconnector between Scotland and England, a joint venture between National Grid and Scottish Power.

The EGL 3 / 4 projects will play a vital role in achieving the UK and Scottish governments net zero targets and significantly increase the UK’s capacity for clean, green renewable power.

The area of work, pertaining to this Notice to Mariners (NtM) for EGL 3 / 4, is illustrated in Figure 1 and Table 6, with the survey vessel contact details for the project found in Table 1 and Table 2. Contact details for the project Fisheries Liaison Officers are detailed below.

The non-intrusive geophysical survey works are being carried out by Next Geosolutions.

The vessels used will be: DEEP Seapal, Deep SV Miranda and DEEP Breaker.

Eastern Green Link 3 is a HVDC electricity transmission interconnector between Scotland and England, a joint venture between National Grid and Scottish & Southern Electricity Transmission (SSEN).

The EGL 3 project will play a vital role in achieving the UK and Scottish governments net zero targets and significantly increase the UK’s capacity for clean, green renewable power.

The EGL 3 marine geotechnical survey works consist of shallow cone penetration tests (CPTs) and vibrocores (VCs) to a maximum of 6 m below seabed at approximate 1 km intervals.

The area of work, pertaining to this Notice to Mariners (NtM) for EGL 3, is illustrated in Figure 1, with the survey vessel contact details for the project found in Table 1. Note, centreline co-ordinates are provided on the associated Kingfisher notice.

Contact details for the project Fisheries Liaison Officers are detailed below.

The geotechnical survey works are being carried out by Next Geosolutions using the following vessel:

Ievoli Grey (IMO 9608788; MMSI 247325100; Call Sign IBCM).

Vessels are requested to pass at a safe speed and distance and fishing vessels are advised to remain a safe distance, approximately 550m (0.3 nautical miles) from the areas identified. During these works the vessel will have restricted manoeuvrability as it completes its work scope.

VHF CH 16 will be monitored at all times and will be used to contact the coastguard in the event of an emergency.

The works are scheduled to be deployed during four visits to site (from Port of Blyth). Vessels are requested to leave a wide berth during the installation operations of at least 0.5 Nm.

The length of the boulder clearance and pre-trenching activities will vary depending on the execution progress, and details of any changes will be confirmed in further Notice to Mariners to be issued during the course of the project.

The table above provides the coordinates of the total working area of the boulder clearance and pre-trenching works at the SOWF array. 

The TSV Aethra shall be monitoring VHF 77 during the scope of the works and shall also be exhibiting the correct day shapes and night lights for a vessel restricted in ability to manoeuvre.

**Note: In the exclusion zone, temporary reduction by approx. 1 meter in navigable depth might be created from the pre-plough spoil heaps.

Missing Passive Acoustic Monitoring Equipment in East Anglia THREE Offshore Windfarm

• Seiche Limited

• Passive Acoustic Monitoring at the East Anglia Three Offshore Windfarm

Date of issue: 31 Oct 2023

Please, be advised that Seiche is missing 4 Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) Stations that had been deployed on the seabed at locations in and around the East Anglia THREE Offshore Windfarm Area in July 2023.

The following map shows all mooring locations, including the missing locations: EA3_01, EA3_06, EA3_08 and EA3_12:

The table below shows the original locations of these 4 PAM stations:

Below are pictures that show the equipment attached to the PAM stations:

If you find, or found, something similar to this equipment in your catch, please, contact us on:

E-mail: environmental@seiche.com

Tel: +44 (0) 1409 404050 Web: https://www.seiche.com

Or

Fisheries Liaison Officer (FLO):

Name: Jonathan Keer // Freya Sandison Email: jonathan@brownmay.com Telephone: +44 (0) 7850 604851

Please be advised that Aspect Land & Hydrographic Surveys Ltd (on behalf of SHEPD) will be undertaking subsea inspections of several cables across the Orkney Islands. The inspection works will be centred on a 50m cable corridor, defined by the start and end coordinates listed in this notice.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

Planned deployment within the Salamander Offshore Array Area consists of:

• 2x Fugro Sea-watch LiDAR Buoys (SWLB079 and SWLB086)
• 1x Fugro Wavescan Metocean Buoy (WS164) with a Nortek Signature 250 kHz Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) on the keel weight.

Illustrative figures showing the buoy dimensions and general mooring arrangement are provided in the attached NtM.

Once in the water the top of the tallest mast is around 4 meters above the sea level. The buoys' drifting radius is approximately 240 m from their deployment positions. 

The buoys are fitted with the following navigational safety features:

• Buoys painted yellow in colour;
• Yellow St Andrews Cross;
• Passive radar reflector (Mobri S-4);
• AIS AtoN (with MMSI numbers: 992351428, 992351430, 992351429); and
• Marine lantern (with flash character Fl (5) Y 20s - 5 yellow flashes every 20 seconds) with a range of 4 nautical miles.

The trenching trials will commence on the 26 November for approx. 3 weeks. The work will be continuous, 24 hours a day. Coordinates and chart of the location are provided below.

At each trial location, the proposed sequence of activities includes:

• Pre-Lay Survey of selected site;
• Demonstration of cable burial;
• As-Buried Survey; and
• Recover cable back to NKT Victoria.

All equipment used for the trials will be removed upon completion of the test.

During operations the NKT Victoria will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessel will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message.

It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 1.5Nm separation distance from NKT Victoria and pass at reduced speed. Fishing gear or other equipment with seabed intervention should not be deployed when approaching the working area.

An Offshore Fisheries Liaison Officer will be onboard NKT Victoria to provide support and coordination to fishing vessels, please see contact details below

See detailed map on our bulletin website

See detailed map on our bulletin website

The operations will be performed by Grand Canyon III (Call Sign: LACJ8 / IMO N° 9695963 / MMSI N° 257010590), a DP2 offshore support vessel presented in below Figure 4-1. The vessel has a length of 127 m and a breadth of 25 m. The draft is approximately 6.5 m.

The vessel will have the trenching vehicle deployed either over the side or the stern, or an ROV for survey activities deployed over the side. During these operations, it will be restricted in manoeuvrability. All vessels operating within this area are requested to keep a 0.5 nm distance and pass at minimum speed to reduce vessel wash. The vessel will always be listening to VHF channel 16 and can set any other channel as required

OWPL have redeployed the FLS2 at its previous location. (DDM = 58° 48.7157' N, 4° 20.64135' W, DMS = 58° 48' 42.94" N, 4° 20' 38.48" W). Both the FLS2 and the wave buoy are part of continued metocean survey works which are continuing through to October 2023.

Onshore FLO: phone: +44 (0) 7926 418 820, email: OWPLFisheries@xodusgroup.com;

The USVs will be mobilised from Scarborough Harbour where each USV will be escorted out of the harbour limits, before transiting to the survey area. Survey Operations will be continuous 24hrs a day. Although vessels are uncrewed, they are managed remotely continuously using 360-degree cameras and other sensors. 

The works will commence on the 13th of November 2023, continuing until 15th December when all locations have been surveyed. The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day. A chart of the DBA / DBB Array Areas and bounding coordinates is provided below.   

It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 500m separation distance from the USVs and pass at reduced speed.  

Contact details:

• Onshore FLO: phone: +44 131 385 7374 or +44 1224 219 932, email: OWPLFisheries@xodusgroup.com;
• Offshore: T: +44(0)1856 851966 (office) M: +44(0)771 056 2605 (mobile);             
• Name of vessels carrying out the work and equipment used:MV C-Odyssey (MMSI:235088132) (Leask Marine Limited, Phone: M: +44 (0)7718 424491 P: +44 (0)1856 874725 Email: info@leaskmarine.com)
• Two floating Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) Systems (FLS);
• One Wave Buoy; and
• One Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP).
• Port of operation: Stromness, Scotland

Survey Operations: The survey route at the North end covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centre line extending seaward to the 15m depth contour as shown in the image below.

Geophysical Survey: The Marine Sensor vessel shall survey the seabed using towed and vessel mounted sensors at a speed of approximately 2-4 knots. The vessel shall survey the Northern side (Brough Head), however the survey sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

The jack-up barge Seafox 7 is due to start geotechnical site investigations on the 11th November 2023 and to continue the survey until early March 2024.  This estimate includes delays likely to be caused by bad weather. During the survey, Seafox 7 will drill 60 boreholes at discrete locations in the project site.  The vessel will operate for 24 hours per day during the survey.  The survey area is illustrated in the Notice to Mariners and bounded by the coordinates below:-

• NE Marker: 53° 29.460’N 003° 35.220’W
• SE Marker: 53° 29.532’N 003° 44.760’W
• SW Marker: 53° 26.700’N  003° 51.600’W
• NW Marker: 53° 29.280’N 003° 51.600’W

Seafox 7 will be supported by the vessels Elisa and Fairplay 32 in its daily operations, and these vessels will tow the barge between sampling locations.  The tugs will standby at anchor on the project site, and will also be transiting between the site and nearby ports. The vessel MCS Boreas will be assisting the Seafox 7 with crew transfer operations to shore on a twice-weekly basis.

Vessel details

Seafox 7 is a jack-up barge with a red hull and white superstructure.  It measures 55.5m long with a beam of 32.2m.  Details for this barge and its support vessels are provided below:-

• 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.

Full details of all of the vessels can be found in the Notice to Mariners.

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.

Please be advised that Benthic will be performing survey operations in the form of geotechnical soil investigation in the North Sea on behalf of a Renantis and Bluefloat Energy joint venture. Benthic will be aboard MV Ocean Zephyr.

The Ocean Zephyr will be working within the proposed Broadshore and the adjacent Sinclair and Scaraben Wind Farm development areas. The Ocean Zephyr is intended to be within the site between the periods 6 November to 31 January. The Ocean Zephyr may not be within the development area the entire duration and may be transiting outside of the fields during this time.

The Broadshore, Sinclair and Scaraben areas are located approximately 60Nm North of Aberdeen and 40Nm North of Peterhead, Scotland, shown as the orange area in Figure 1 in the attached.

A specification sheet for the Ocean Zephyr is provided in the attached Notice to Mariners.

The scope of work involves acquiring insitu Cone Penetration Test data up to 60m below seafloor and collecting soil samples up to 60m below seafloor. While the vessel is collecting data the Ocean Zephyr will remain on DP2 and will effectively be anchored to the seafloor with a recovery time up to one hour if the vessel needs to be maneuvered in an emergency.

The Ocean Zephyr will deploy a PROD, a remotely operated seafloor drill. From where the Ocean Zephyr is positioned on DP2, the PROD may be located up to 100m horizontal distance from the vessel. The PROD requires up to one hour to recover from the seafloor in emergencies. During normal operations, the PROD is expected to be on the seafloor for between 12hours and 60 hours. Operations are likely to continue in seastates up to Hs 2.75m and wind speeds less than 30 knots.

The location where work will be performed is indicated in Figure 1 in the attached. The boundary coordinates for the Broadshore, Sinclair and Scaraben Offshore Wind Farm areas are in WGS-1984, UTM Zone 30N, and are listed in the attached NTM. 

The vessel Ocean Zephyr is a DP II (Dynamically Positioned) vessel and for the majority of the period of works will have restricted ability to manoeuvre. We request that all vessels within the vicinity of the Ocean Zephyr always remain at least 500 m clear and pass at a reduced speed. The vessel Ocean Zephyr has AIS installed. A specification sheet for the vessel is included as an attachment to this document.

Please be aware that, during the survey activities, by virtue of its mode of operation the vessel will be Restricted in her Ability to Manoeuvre (RAM) as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972, Rule 3). Masters of vessels are therefore requested to maintain their vessels and gears at a minimum safe passing distance from the vessel of 500 metres when it is undertaking work and showing the appropriate shapes and lights in accordance with COLREGs Rule 27.

Fishermen who have static gears deployed beyond 12 nm are reminded that static gear must be marked in accordance with Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 404/2011 (Marking of fishing gear, retrieval and notification of lost gear - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).

Following the most recent subsea survey carried out in August 2023, updated information of inter-array cable exposures are listed and illustrated below. Analysis of survey data at the wind farm indicates the locations of exposures of sections of inter-array cables are subject to change resulting from dynamic movements of the seabed but are primarily focused within the South-South East of the wind farm area.

Mariners are reminded that further safety information related to array cable exposures can be found in “The Risks of Fishing Near Cables and Renewable Energy Structures”, published on the KIS-ORCA website https://kis-orca.org/safety/the-risks-of-fishing-near-cables-renewable-energy-structures/. General safety information can be found here: https://www.seafish.org/article/kingfisher-bulletins.. All mariners are requested to make themselves aware of their obligations for conducting activities over buried and protected cables under International and UK Cable (Subsea) Protection Legislation.

A recent survey has detected an area where the cable is intermittently exposed with some free spans a possibility. The exposures are present intermittently across all four cable routes in the area bounded by: 

51° 5.23’N 001° 17.20’E

51° 3.33’N 001° 17.20’E

51° 5.00’N 001° 11.67’E

51° 4.88’N 001° 11.67’E

A remedial plan is being formulated. Fishermen are requested to stay well clear.

Works to be carried out outside of channel but a split hopper barge will be operating between the Dredge site (Marchwood ERF SW intake) and the Nab spoil ground once per day. Divers will be in the water periodically throughout the duration of the dredging so reduced wash in the vicinity should be in place. 

The Shetland HVDC link is a critical electricity transmission link and will form part of the electrical transmission grid that is essential to the transport of renewable energy between the locations where it is generated and areas of demand, and the delivery of both Scotland’s and the United Kingdom’s 2030 climate change targets.

Campaign 3 (KP57 to KP160)

For installation Campaign 3, the vessel, NKT Victoria, has laid the cable on the seabed and the trenching vessel, Grand Canyon III, has trenched the cable to the required burial depth in the seabed.

For any sections between KP101 – KP160 along the cable route that have been unable to be trenched, rock placement is being undertaken by the vessel Rockpiper to achieve the required protection.

All works will be continuous, 24 hours a day. For any crossings, protection will follow the agreement made with the asset owner. In the period between cable lay and cable burial, or protection by rock placement, the cable will be exposed on the seafloor. During this time the cable is sensitive to any external impact and constitutes a snagging risk for anchoring, fishing gear or other equipment with seabed intervention. For this reason, the Campaign 3 (KP101 – KP160) cable corridor will remain closed for any fishing that interacts with the seabed, anchoring or use of other equipment with seabed intervention.

To protect the cable in the cable corridor, Guard Vessels are deployed along the route. It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 500m safe distance from the rock placement vessels and pass at reduced speed.

It is advised that mobile fishing gear should not be placed within 500m of the cable corridor. Static fishing gear, or any other equipment that interacts with the seabed, should not be deployed within the cable corridor.

Co-ordinates of the cable route and charts of the working area are provided below.

Please be aware that Rockpiper will be restricted in their ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972). Masters of vessels are therefore requested to maintain their vessels at a minimum safe passing distance of 500 metres. For restricted areas, communication should be made to Rockpiper and the Guard Vessels for safe passage. Rockpiper will display the appropriate shapes and lights in accordance with COLREGs Rules 16 and 18.

The survey route is 165km in length and covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centerline as shown in the images below. The Silver Wave shall conduct supporting operations from approximately the 12m contour water depth through to 100m water depth.

Phase 1 – Geophysical Survey   

The Silver Wave shall operate within the detailed survey blocks (Offshore Block 2 to Block 7) from the Northern side working Southwards, however the survey block sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

Phase 2 – Benthic and Geotechnical Survey

On completion of the Phase 1 Geophysical Survey, the survey vessel Viking Reach shall begin the Benthic and Geotechnical Survey along the route. The support vessel Silver Wave will work alongside the Viking Reach during this time.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

The survey route is 165km in length and covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centerline as shown in the images below. The Silver Wave shall conduct supporting operations from approximately the 12m contour water depth through to 100m water depth.

Phase 1 – Geophysical Survey   

The Silver Wave shall operate within the detailed survey blocks (Offshore Block 2 to Block 7) from the Northern side working Southwards, however the survey block sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

Phase 2 – Benthic and Geotechnical Survey

On completion of the Phase 1 Geophysical Survey, the survey vessel Viking Reach shall begin the Benthic and Geotechnical Survey along the route. The support vessel Silver Wave will work alongside the Viking Reach during this time.

Survey Operations: The survey route is 165km in length and covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centerline as shown in the images below. The Viking Reach shall operate from approximately the 12m contour water depth through to 100m water depth.

Phase 1 – Geophysical Survey The Viking Reach shall operate with a tethered Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) which shall survey the seabed behind the vessel at a speed of 2-4 knots. The ROV shall survey the detailed survey blocks (Offshore Block 1 to Block 6) from the Northern side working Southwards, however the survey block sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

Phase 2 – Benthic and Geotechnical Survey: On completion of the Phase 1 Geophysical Survey the Viking Reach shall begin the Benthic and Geotechnical Survey along the route. The vessel shall deploy over the side equipment to inspect and sample the seabed

Survey Operations: The survey route is 165km in length and covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centerline as shown in the images below. The Viking Reach shall operate from approximately the 12m contour water depth through to 100m water depth.

Phase 1 – Geophysical Survey The Viking Reach shall operate with a tethered Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) which shall survey the seabed behind the vessel at a speed of 2-4 knots. The ROV shall survey the detailed survey blocks (Offshore Block 1 to Block 6) from the Northern side working Southwards, however the survey block sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

Phase 2 – Benthic and Geotechnical Survey: On completion of the Phase 1 Geophysical Survey the Viking Reach shall begin the Benthic and Geotechnical Survey along the route. The vessel shall deploy over the side equipment to inspect and sample the seabed

Dates: Operations will take place subject to weather and other operational factors from 16th October for 13 weeks. Up to 6 USVs are expected to be operational at one time.

A support vessel will escort the USVs from the active ports to clear water.

Although the vessel is uncrewed, it is crewed throughout the 24 hour operation, piloted remotely using 360 degree cameras and other navigational aids.

Figure 1 below indicates the operational area. The survey area boundary is indicated in Table 1 below also. In addition to the survey area, the USVs will transit from one of the named ports above to site.

Fisheries Liaison for this survey will be co-ordinated by Natural Power. All commercial fishery queries, should be directed to Peter Berney or Hollie Maven; Mobile T: 07391402387  / Email: Ossian.FLO@naturalpower.com.

Table 2: Vessel Details

The USV sends real time images and situational awareness data over satellite to a team of operators keeping watch and controlling the vessel remotely 24/7.

Safety Precautions: The USV is equipped with the following to make it conspicuous to other marine traffic:

• AIS
• VHF
• Navigation Lights & Sound Signal
• Active Radar Reflector
• Superstructure Painted Yellow

Seafarers are asked to avoid contact with the vessel and be aware of the operational area during this period

XOCEAN - Emergency Contact Details:

See detailed map on our bulletin website

See detailed map on our bulletin website

Survey Operations: The survey route is 165km in length and covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centerline as shown in the images below. The Viking Reach shall operate from approximately the 12m contour water depth through to 100m water depth.

Phase 1 – Geophysical Survey The Viking Reach shall operate with a tethered Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) which shall survey the seabed behind the vessel at a speed of 2-4 knots. The ROV shall survey the detailed survey blocks (Offshore Block 1 to Block 6) from the Northern side working Southwards, however the survey block sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

Phase 2 – Benthic and Geotechnical Survey: On completion of the Phase 1 Geophysical Survey the Viking Reach shall begin the Benthic and Geotechnical Survey along the route. The vessel shall deploy over the side equipment to inspect and sample the seabed

Survey Operations: The survey route is 165km in length and covers a corridor of 500m, 250m on each side of the cable route centerline as shown in the images below. The Viking Reach shall operate from approximately the 12m contour water depth through to 100m water depth.

Phase 1 – Geophysical Survey The Viking Reach shall operate with a tethered Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) which shall survey the seabed behind the vessel at a speed of 2-4 knots. The ROV shall survey the detailed survey blocks (Offshore Block 1 to Block 6) from the Northern side working Southwards, however the survey block sequence may be adjusted with regards to the weather conditions.

Phase 2 – Band sample the seabedenthic and Geotechnical Survey: On completion of the Phase 1 Geophysical Survey the Viking Reach shall begin the Benthic and Geotechnical Survey along the route. The vessel shall deploy over the side equipment to inspect. 

The survey work is being undertaken by Fugro and will be conducted from two vessels: the Scout and the Quest. The geotechnical survey is due to start on 27 October 2023. The scouting/guard vessel will be the GV Courage SH170. 

Survey Duration  

The survey will mobilise 27 October 2023 lasting approximately 5 months. To account for all eventualities, we would like to extend the duration to 31 May 2023.  

Survey Tasks  

The survey will involve borehole sampling, using the Geobor-S coring system or similar, with the number and location of the boreholes yet to be finalised. 

As a consequence of equipment being deployed and the modes of operation, all mariners are advised to keep a safe clearance distance of no less than 500 m from the vessel(s). No towed equipment will be used.  

The installation of two Floating LiDAR systems and one Seawatch Midi metocean buoy will be extended from 10 October 2023 to 30 September 2024 within the MarramWind Offshore Wind Farm array area to continue recording wind and metocean data.

All locations referred to are outlined in a table and displayed in Figure 1 within the Notice to Mariners (provided as an attachment to this notice). These locations are all within the MarramWind offshore wind farm 75 km off the east coast of Scotland.

The Seawatch Midi metocean buoy and the FLiDAR buoys are yellow in colour and will exhibit a navigation light according to IALA standards: five (5) flashes at one (1) Hertz, every twenty (20) seconds (Fl (5) Y 20s). The ranges for the lights on the buoys are 5 nautical miles for both Seawatch Midi and the FLiDAR Buoys.

Further details can be found within the attached Notice to Mariners.

The PLGR was completed by the vessel Pacific Dispatch (call sign: 9VFW6) using a grapnel towed from the vessel. The grapnel was deployed to detect and remove surface debris located on the inter-array cable routes, and at the wind turbine and offshore substation topside locations. The Pacific Dispatch has left the NnG site.

A Cable Lay Vessel, the Viking Neptun (call sign: LAYH7), will lay the inter-array cable onto the seabed for this second IAC campaign. Cable lay works commenced on the 25th August at the earliest and take around 4 weeks to complete. The laid cables will be left unburied and unprotected on the seabed until October 2023. Cable pull-in and termination and testing works will take place from the CF Explorer, call sign (5BKK5), from the 27th August at the earliest and last around 7 days.
Cable burial works are due to take place from the 1st October, from the vessel Living Stone, call sign (PBXN) and last around 6 weeks.

The crew transfer vessel; MCS Boreas has left site on the 15th of September 2023. The Seazip 9 (call sign: PGYL) left the
NnG site on the 3rd of October 2023 due to a breakdown and will be replaced by the crew transfer vessel Iceni Defender
(call sign: MAND2) that will be supporting this campaign from the 6th October at the earliest

Contact details for the Pacific Dispatch vessel have been updated in table 2 below. Further details of the vessels involved are provided in tables 3-7 below and vessel contact details will be provided in a subsequent NtM. Details of CTV’s and Walk to Work vessels involved in cable pull in and termination and testing works will also be provided in a subsequent NtM.

Area of Operations
Mariners are advised that the Pacific Dispatch, Viking Neptun, CF Explorer and Living Stone vessels will be working within the boundaries of the Neart na Gaoithe Offshore Wind Farm, shown in Figure 1 within the coordinates shown in Table 1 All vessels are requested to remain at least 500 meters away from all the work vessels and static fishing gear is requested to be removed from the exclusion area shown in Figure 1 and Table 1. Vessels over 15m are also requested to have AIS turned on and detectable when in the vicinity of construction works. The second cable lay in campaign is due to begin on the 14th of August and last around 4 weeks. Cable pull-in and termination and testing works are due to commence on the 20th August and continue throughout 2023. Cable burial is due to commence on the 1st October and is anticipated to last around 6 weeks. It is anticipated that all PLGR and cable lay in activities will be completed by end of December 2023, weather dependant.
 

Schedule
The inter-array cable PLGR commencedon the 10th August 2023 and was completed on the 14th August. The second cable lay in campaign is due to begin on the 25th of August and expected to last around 4 weeks. Cable pull-in and termination and testing works are due to commence on the 27th August and continue throughout 2023. Cable burial is due to commence on the 1st October and is anticipated to last around 6 weeks. It is anticipated that all PLGR and cable lay in activities will be completed by end of December 2023, weather dependant.

Weather permitting, constructions work will be carried out on a continuous basis; 24-hour working, seven days a week
 

For updates on the progress of the works, information will be provided in the Weekly Notice of Operations available on the NnG project website: https://nngoffshorewind.com/downloads/
 

Vessel Associated with the Activity

The floating LiDAR buoy, surface metocean equipment buoys and seabed landers have been deployed at two separate locations. The equipment deployed will gather wind and metocean data which will be used to inform the development of the Project.

The Floating LiDAR  buoy , Metocean Midi Buoy and Metocean Wavescan Buoy are all surface buoys, tethered to the sea bed with single mooring lines. The Seabed Lander is a frame anchored on the seabed, approximately 1.7 m diameter and 0.6 m high. 

The Floating LiDAR buoy, Metocean Midi Buoy and Metocean Wavescan Buoy have light marking characteristics comprising FI (5) Y 20s with a nominal range of 5 nautical miles.

Surface equipment at Site 1 and Site 2 are transmitting their locations via AIS.

Equipment details and mooring designs of the floating LiDAR buoy, metocean buoys and seabed lander are provided in this notice to mariners.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

A recent survey has detected an area where the cable is intermittently exposed with some free spans in evidence. These exposures run between the following coordinates:

Start point: Lat:51°41.543'N, Long: 001°56.407'E. End point: Lat: 51°41.777'N, Long: 001°57.030'E.

A remedial plan is being formulated, in the meantime a guard vessel is stationed at the location.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

See detailed map on our bulletin website

The marker buoy vessel, Bright Blue, will transit to the work site and deploy the temporary marker buoy at the location set out in Table 1. The total duration of this activity will be one working day. Figure 2 below shows the type of marker buoy that will be installed.

It is requested that all vessels give Bright Blue a wide berth and pass at reduced speed when the vessel is engaged in deployment activities.

All vessels will monitor VHF CH16 and VHF DSC Ch70 continuously throughout.

The marker buoy vessel, Bright Blue, will transit to the work site and deploy the temporary marker buoy at the location set out in Table 1. The total duration of this activity will be one working day. Figure 2 below shows the type of marker buoy that will be installed.

It is requested that all vessels give Bright Blue a wide berth and pass at reduced speed when the vessel is engaged in deployment activities.

All vessels will monitor VHF CH16 and VHF DSC Ch70 continuously throughout.

During operations, the VOS Start will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessel will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message. It is requested that all vessels maintain a minimum of 500m separation distance from the Offshore Supply Vessel and pass at reduced speed. Fishing gear or other equipment with seabed intervention should not be deployed when approaching the working area.

(Windfarm Marine Licence MS-00009774) installation from and no earlier than 1 October 2023. The first work scope, which will be undertaken, is the installation of Monopiles from the 1 October 2023.

Please be aware that, during the Monopile installation works, the Bokalift 2, by virtue of its mode of operation the vessel, will be Restricted in its Ability to Manoeuvre (RAM). Masters of vessels are requested to maintain their vessels and gears at a minimum safe passing distance from the vessel of 500 meters when it is undertaking work and showing the appropriate shapes and lights in accordance with COLREGs Rule 27 (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972, Rule 3).

The scope of work includes the installation of Monopiles and Transition Pieces at 62 foundation locations, and the installation of two Offshore Substations. The installation of Monopiles and Topsides will be carried out with dynamically positioned installation vessels.

The installation of the Transition Pieces will be carried out from a jack-up vessel. A separate Notice to Mariners will be issued ahead of the start of Offshore Substation installation and ahead of the Transition Piece installation works.  

Wind turbines will be installed onto pre-installed jackets in the NnG Wind Farm Area. The turbines will be brought to site and installed from the Port of Dundee by the Blue Tern vessel (call sign 9HA5208) and WTG commissioning will be carried out using the HST Swansea call sign (MNGM8). The Farra Ciara call sign (MKPT9) crew transfer vessel (CTV) will be supporting the turbine installation campaigns. The Channel Chieftain VI CTV (call sign 9HB8741) will be replaced by the Green Storm (call sign: 2EXU3) from the 28th of August 2023, at the earliest. The Green Storm will be carrying out refuelling works for the WTG temporary generators.

Additional vessel information and contact details will be updated in subsequent notices.

Mariners are advised that the aforementioned vessels will be working within the NnG Wind Farm Area

Vessels over 15m are also requested to have AIS turned on and detectable when in the vicinity of construction
works
 

Schedule

The turbine installation work commenced from 15th of July 2023and is currently ongoing. It is anticipated that the
installation works will continue throughout 2023.
Weather permitting, construction works will be carried out on a continuous basis, 24-hours per day, seven days a
week.

For updates on the progress of the works, information will be provided in the Weekly Notice of Operations available
on the NnG project website: https://nng
 

The marine hazard is located on the seabed in the near vicinity of the intended route of the DBC export cable and is a group of metallic objects associated with military (probably WW2) activity in nature.

A 50 metre Archaeological Exclusion Zone (AEZ) has been implemented under the terms of the Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI) produced and agreed with Historic England as per Licence condition in accordance with 16(g) of dML 1 and Condition 13(g) of dML 3.

Fishing vessels and other vessels engaged in the deploying of sub-surface and bottom interacting gear should avoid the area.

Please be advised that installation of the Havhingsten fibre optic telecommunication Whitley Bay Stub Route has been completed.

The supplier of the Havhingsten cable is Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN). Intertek are the environmental and permitting consultants.

The Whitley Bay Stub Route has been installed between the Beach Man Hole (BMH) and the territorial sea limit but it will not yet be connected to the telecommunication network. This cable is to provide infrastructure for the network to expand relatively easily when demand is required within the next 10 - 15 years.

Due to challenging soil conditions and rocky seabed, there are sections of surface laid cable and areas with shallow burial (less than 0.20m burial depth), coordinates can be found below. No further operations to bury these sections of cable are planned due to the challenging soil conditions. The cable is protected by the armoured cable type and from the BMH up to kilometre point (KP) 0.474 the cable is additionally protected by Articulated Pipe.

Coordinates for the surface laid cable and shallow burial areas are provided in the attached Notice to Mariners.

Post-Lay Inspection & Burial (PLIB) by jetting for the section of surface laid cable close to the territorial sea limit was completed on the 1 November 2022.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

The works will commence on the 05th of July 2023, continuing until approximately Q2 2024.  The works will be continuous, 24 hours a day.  A chart of the DBA construction area boundary coordinates and a table of WTG location coordinates is provided below. A running list of the completed WTG installations and the next locations to be installed is presented in the Weekly Notice of Operations.

During operations, the Voltaire will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre as defined under COLREGs (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972) and will display the appropriate day shapes and lights. The vessel will also transmit an Automatic Identification System (AIS) message. 

During operations, a Statutory Safety zone of 500m radius will be in place around the Voltaire during the installation of WTGs.  The safety zone will be monitored by a guard vessel. The primary response will be to warn passing traffic of the ongoing works and any active safety zones, and to alert any vessels where an infringement may occur or has occurred. 

Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission Plc has become aware of two areas of potential cable exposure on the Caithness Moray HVDC link, and request that a 500m safety zone is observed centred on the co-ordinates below.

Mariners are requested not to anchor or tow equipment inside the 500m safety zone surrounding the potentially exposed cable, as this would pose a risk of both snagging and / or damage to vessels, gear and the Caithness Moray HVDC link.

This email serves as notification under condition 35 of licence 04368/18/2

East Anglia THREE Offshore Windfarm Marine Mammal Monitoring - Passive Acoustic Monitoring Baseline Deployment

• Seiche Limited

• Passive Acoustic Monitoring at the East Anglia Three Offshore Windfarm

• NTM:  PAM-EA3- 003                                                                                   Date of issue: 03 May 2023

Dear Owners, Ships Agents, Masters, Pilots and Fishermen,

Please, be advised that Seiche Limited will deploy 8 Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) Stations on the seabed in and at locations around the East Anglia THREE Offshore Windfarm Area, starting from the 13th of May 2023. The deployment phase is expected to be completed on the 20th of May 2023.

Seiche will utilise the Reykjanes vessel for the deployment.

Reykjanes

Scope: PAM stations deployment

Vessel: Reykjanes

LOA: 40.16 m

Call sign: OVSI2

IMO: 7392311

MMSI: 219329000

Phone: +45 (0) 8213 6973

Mobile: +45 (0) 2614 9844

Once deployed, the PAM stations will remain on the seabed until approximately the 31st of October 2027.  The PAM stations have 12 m height above the seabed, and their location will not be marked by a surface buoy.

All marine traffic is advised to maintain 500 m safety zone around the Reykjanes or any other vessel at these locations during deployment or servicing for their safety.

Locations of the PAM stations in WGS-84 coordinates:

This notification supersedes all previous notifications issued in relation to this activity.

See detailed map on our bulletin website

All instrumentation is deployed at a single deployment location within the project site. The purpose of the instrumentation is to gather Metocean and wind data to inform the proposed Muir Mhor Offshore Wind Farm Project.

The FLS mooring comprises of a surface visible buoy moored to the seabed via a two-point mooring system constructed using a combination of rope and chain.  Two guard buoys are located at approximately 30m from the main FLS buoy in a North/South orientation, with the mooring spread covering an approximate 315m radius. There is also a seabed frame for current measurements contained within the overall deployment footprint, approximately 30m East of the main FLS buoy. Note: there are 2x orange polyform marker buoys located above the northern anchor position (detailed below) which will be removed during the first planned maintenance visit.

The FLS light characteristics are Fl (5) Y 20s with 5nm range. The guard buoys’ light characteristics are FI Y 5s with 3nm range and include a yellow St. Andrew’s Cross topmark. The FLS is designated as “Muir Mhor Floating Lidar” on AIS, with MMSI number 992351400.

Details of the surface visible buoy, guard buoys, seabed frame and mooring arrangement are provided in the attachments.

MARINE USERS are requested to maintain a safe clearance distance of 500m from all assets.

The 17 construction boundary demarcation buoys will remain in location until the windfarm construction activities have been completed and handed over to the Operations and Maintenance teams.

Once the permanent Aids to Navigation (AtoN) have been installed on the WTGs, Trinity House will approve the permanent AtoN and the boundary buoys will be removed.

If anyone finds a buoy that is off station or encounters a buoy location where it is not functioning or is missing, they should report this to the Dogger Bank Duty Marine Coordinator as soon as possible.

Eolos has deployed two (2) Floating LiDAR Devices offshore Scotland for the acquisition of Wind and Metocean Data for a minimum period of 12 months.

The units deployed are:

• FLS200 E25 (deployed 09 Apr 2023); and
• FLS200 E26 (deployed 08 Apr 2023)

Metocean buoy

Illustrative figures showing the buoy dimensions and general arrangement are provided in the attached NtM. 

Once in the water the top of the tallest mast is around 4 meters above the sea level.

The buoy is fitted with the following navigational safety features:

• Buoy painted yellow in colour;
• Yellow St Andrews Cross;
• Radar reflector;
• AIS AtoN (with MMSI 992351405, corresponding to Broadshore FLIDAR E26); and
• Marine lantern (with flash character Fl (5) Y 20s - 5 yellow flashes every 20 seconds) with a range of 5 nautical miles.

Mooring design

The buoy drifting radius is approximately 240 m from its deployment position. All material will be removed from the seabed after the measurement campaign is complete. The mooring layout design is provided on the final page of this document. The mooring layout design is provided as the final page of the attached NtM.

Eolos has deployed two (2) Floating LiDAR Devices offshore Scotland for the acquisition of Wind and Metocean Data for a minimum period of 12 months.

The units deployed are:

• FLS200 E25 (deployed 09 Apr 2023); and
• FLS200 E26 (deployed 08 Apr 2023).

Deployment coordinates and chart are provided in the attached NtM. 

Metocean buoy

Illustrative figures showing the buoy dimensions and general arrangement are provided in the attached NtM. 

Once in the water the top of the tallest mast is around 4 meters above the sea level.

The buoy is fitted with the following navigational safety features:

• Buoy painted yellow in colour;
• Yellow St Andrews Cross;
• Radar reflector;
• AIS AtoN (with MMSI 992351404, corresponding to Bellrock FLIDAR E25); and
• Marine lantern (with flash character Fl (5) Y 20s - 5 yellow flashes every 20 seconds) with a range of 5 nautical miles.

Mooring design

The buoy drifting radius is approximately 165 m from its deployment position. All material will be removed from the seabed after the measurement campaign is complete. The mooring layout design is provided on the final page of this document. The mooring layout design is provided as the final page of the attached NtM.

The 20 construction boundary demarcation buoys will remain in location until the windfarm construction activities have been completed and handed over to the Operations and Maintenance teams.

Once the permanent Aids to Navigation (AtoN) have been installed on the WTGs, Trinity House will approve the permanent AtoN and the boundary buoys will be removed.

If anyone finds a buoy that is off station or encounters a buoy location where it is not functioning or is missing, they should report this to the Dogger Bank Duty Marine Coordinator as soon as possible.