* Author: Juan Bogarra Macias *
January 14, 2013 was a memorable date for me: I landed in Barrow-in-Furness (Cumbria, United Kingdom). Like many other colleagues in similar situations, I was leaving behind my country, my family and my friends. As well as nostalgia and memories, my suitcase was also filled with high expectations, enthusiasm and excitement to learn about a new reality and a new project: the development of the West of Duddon Sands offshore wind farm.
I discovered all of that and a lot more as well. Despite the harsh weather conditions in that part of the world, I received a warm welcome from the ScottishPower team and our partners at Dong Energy. From then on, it has been a constant learning curve: new ways of working, or doing things, assimilating concepts and combining them with my previous experience in project management to take a proactive attitude, help and support the joint venture (ScottishPower Renewables and Dong) in developing the wind farm.
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It is a project with a lot of “first times”. In June 2013, we saw the Pacific Orca vessel lay the first foundations; on 27 September, the Sea Installer assembled the first wind turbine; in November, the offshore substation was ready be be connected; in January of this year, we connected the cable in the red circuit; and shortly after that, on 16 January 2014 at 12:06 H, the F10 wind turbine supplied the first kilowatts to the British grid. We witnessed the results of a team effort. This is one of those moments where everything comes to a halt and for a few seconds you feel satisfaction for the result of many days of hard work.
During the construction phase of the wind farm, I learned firsthand about the work of installing the stone to protect against scour or erosion, the monopile foundations and transitional elements, the cable, the wind turbines, etc. It’s when you’re out there in the middle of the Irish Sea, on one of those boats, that you realise exactly what it’s all about, the huge dimensions of this kind of projects and the adverse climate conditions you have to overcome to achieve your goals. It has been an invaluable experience.
Some years ago, I visited an exhibition on the history and features of a hydroelectric power plant. The many black-and-white photographs of men and women depicted the people involved in the work of building the plant. At the time, I thought that it had not only been part of the company´s history, but also of the lives of those people. That’s how I feel today: that I’m part of history because I was able to take part in the construction of the first offshore wind farm to be built by Iberdrola or any Spanish company.
Finally, I’d like to thank Iberdrola and the ScottishPower and Dong team for this opportunity and in particular, my wife, Patricia, for her unconditional support every step of the way.
