France launches two new offshore wind tenders

FRANCE - The projects will be awarded at the end of 2023 or early 2024.

Wind Europe has announced that France has just opened its first offshore wind farm (St Nazaire, 480 MW) and it has launched tenders for two new ones. They're bottom-fixed and will have a total capacity of 2.5 GW.

The first wind farm will be 35 km (21.7 miles) off Oléron island in the Atlantic (Nouvelle-Aquitaine). It will have a capacity of about 1 GW. The choice of zone follows a public consultation with more than 15,000 participants.

The second wind farm will be 38 km (23.6 miles) off the coast of Normandy. It will have a capacity of about 1.5 GW and is the second project in the area - the first one of around 1 GW is currently under the tender.

Developers can submit their initial application by 23 December 2022. Then there's a 3-month process of "competitive dialogue" - developers are invited to discuss the project with public authorities before submitting their final application - starting in February 2023. The projects will be awarded at the end of 2023 or early 2024.

Source:  Wind Europe