Taratest Oy has signed an agreement with Utilitas Wind for geotechnical investigations in the Saare-Liivi offshore wind farm area in Estonia. Utilitas Wind is a leading Estonian renewable energy company focused on the development and operation of wind farms. The investigations will be conducted in the Gulf of Riga during the spring and summer of 2025, using a jack-up vessel. This project is the largest offshore geotechnical investigation in Taratest’s history and an important step in the research of large offshore wind farms.
Taratest’s task is to collect precise information about the soil and bedrock in the area to support the planning of the foundation phase of the wind turbines. Taratest has developed its marine survey services in collaboration with Alfons Håkans over several years and believes that conducting the survey with a jack-up vessel is more cost-effective and better suited to the shallow waters and lighter weather conditions of the Baltic Sea compared to traditional survey vessels.
The Saare-Liivi wind farm is funded by the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), and the first phase will involve the construction of approximately 80 wind turbines with a total capacity of 1,200 megawatts. The design and construction will take place from 2026 to 2029, with the first phase expected to be completed by 2030. The estimated annual production of the wind farm is over five terawatt-hours.
Work in Estonia began on April 16, 2025, and the project will employ several people from April to June.