One of the biggest boats in Great Yarmouth will soon be installing wind turbines off the coast of Taiwan, after a coastal firm sealed a major contract.

Offshore installation company Seajacks has won its first renewables contract outside Europe, to install all 20 6MW turbines at the 120MW Formosa 1 offshore wind farm in the Taiwan Strait.

The company will send its 10,000-tonne jack-up vessel Zaratan to complete the project for Siemens Gamesa, with work scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2019.

Seajacks chairman Soichi Inoue said: 'This exciting contract award announces the arrival of Seajacks as a global player in offshore wind farm installation and it builds on our years of experience in Europe.

'It is also a very exciting time for Taiwan and we're delighted to be playing a part in delivering the country's first commercial-scale offshore wind farm.

'Zaratan has proven to be a tried and trusted platform for innovative projects like this in harsh environments. We're looking forward to working in partnership with Siemens Gamesa and Formosa's owners to bring offshore wind power to Taiwan and show once again what we can do.'

Niels Steenberg, Siemens Gamesa's executive general manager for the region, said: 'We welcome Seajacks bringing a suitable vessel to Taiwan as one of the first suppliers, relieving one of the bottlenecks for utility scale offshore wind in the region. We expect more to follow, now that the Taiwanese pipeline until 2024 is clear, creating a healthy and sustainable market.'

Seajacks will be installing the turbines for the Macquarie Capital, Ørsted and Swancor-owned project in around 30 metres of water, up to six kilometres off the coast of Miaoli County in north-west Taiwan.

Formosa Phase 2 has been pinpointed as a key development for the state as it moves away from traditional power sources towards renewable energy. The first phase consisted of two 4MW demonstration turbines installed in 2016.

Seajacks, which is owned by Marubeni Corporation and Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, a government-sponsored private equity corporation, has its headquarters in South Denes Business Park in Great Yarmouth.

The installation contract is subject to a final investment decision and financial close, both of which are expected later this year.

Zaratan is part of the Seajacks fleet which includes Scylla, the $250m vessel named in Great Yarmouth in 2016.

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