COLI delivers 14 transformers to Poland for Baltica 2 offshore wind project

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COLI Group has completed the transport of 14 heavy power transformers for GE Vernova from Türkiye to Poland, overcoming bridge capacity restrictions and complex final mile requirements to support the 1.5 GW Baltica 2 offshore wind development.

The six month logistics project involved three separate chartered vessels, barge operations, temporary storage and heavy road transport. The largest transformers weighed 361 tonnes each, requiring a dedicated logistics solution through the Polish port of Władysławowo.

The delivery comes as construction of Baltica 2 moves deeper into its offshore phase. Developers PGE Group and Ørsted began installing foundations earlier this year, with the project scheduled to reach full commercial operation by the end of 2027.

COLI collected the transformers from GE Vernova’s manufacturing facility in Türkiye before moving them to Safiport in Derince for shipment to Poland.

Rather than moving all 14 units in a single shipment, the cargo was divided across three voyages using three separately chartered vessels.

Ten transformers weighing between 110 and 170 tonnes each were discharged at the Port of Gdynia. From there, the units continued by heavy road transport to the project site.

The remaining four presented a substantially different transport challenge. Each weighed 361 tonnes, making the units more difficult to move over existing road infrastructure.

Those transformers were transferred by barge to Władysławowo, on Poland’s Baltic coast. A roll on, roll off operation was then used to bring the units ashore.

COLI also established a temporary storage area at Władysławowo because the project site was not yet ready to receive the transformers. The arrangement allowed the marine transport programme to continue while preparations for the final delivery location were completed.

Moving equipment weighing several hundred tonnes often turns the final few kilometres into the most complicated part of an international project cargo movement.

That proved to be the case in Poland.

Several bridges on the planned transport route did not have sufficient load bearing capacity for the transformers and their transport equipment. The logistics team therefore had to develop a temporary flyover structure that could be installed above existing infrastructure.

Such structures effectively create an independent load path, allowing the transport combination to cross an obstacle without imposing its full weight directly on infrastructure that was not designed for such concentrated loads.

The operation also required coordination with multiple Polish authorities responsible for the transport route and associated infrastructure.

Weather added another complication. Parts of the project were executed during winter conditions, with temperatures falling to minus 15 degrees Celsius.

Can Yılbaşı, Business Development Manager at COLI Istanbul, said close cooperation between the logistics provider, its partners and GE Vernova had been central to resolving the obstacles encountered during execution.

“We are very proud of our team and partners to have concluded this special and complex project in a successful manner,” Yılbaşı said, thanking GE Vernova for its trust and highlighting the flexibility required from both organisations.

The operation was COLI’s second project directly supporting GE Vernova’s team in Poland.

Felix Peinemann, Managing Director of COLI Group, said coordinating the delivery of 14 large transformers to the same project location within a roughly three month delivery window required resources from several parts of the group’s organisation.

He said the project demonstrated the importance of combining local knowledge with the wider group’s heavy transport and project logistics capabilities.

The transformer deliveries form part of the wider supply chain supporting Baltica 2, currently the largest offshore wind farm under construction in Poland.

Baltica 2 is being developed as a 50:50 joint venture between PGE and Ørsted approximately 40 kilometres off Poland’s Baltic coast. The project will have 1.5 GW of installed capacity and 107 Siemens Gamesa 14 MW turbines.

Offshore foundation installation began in May. A total of 111 monopiles are being installed, comprising 107 turbine foundations and four foundations for offshore substations. Van Oord is carrying out the foundation campaign, which is scheduled to continue through the fourth quarter of 2026.

The project is expected to generate its first electricity during the first half of 2027 and reach full commercial operation by the end of that year. The developers estimate that Baltica 2 will produce enough electricity to meet the annual demand of approximately 2.5 million Polish households.