France opens public consultation to install 750 MW of floating wind energy in Brittany

The French National Commission for Public Debate (CNDP) launched a public consultation on future floating wind energy projects in southern Brittany.

The Multiannual Energy Program (Programmation pluriannuelle de l’énergie (PPE)) calls for tenders for 8.75 GW of offshore wind energy between 2020 and 2028, and for the development of up to 6.2 GW of operating capacity during the same period.

Two of those tenders will be for a 250 MW floating wind power wind turbine project off Brittany in 2021, and for a wind farm with a capacity of up to 500 MW from 2024 onwards. Projects are planned to have a shared connection to the network.

The public consultation will take place from July 20 to November 30 and is expected to help the Ecological Transition Ministry decide on the potential site of wind projects. Wind farms are expected to be built in an area covering around 600 km2.

Consultations carried out in Brittany in recent years have already identified suitable areas for the establishment of new offshore wind farms.

Additional topics for consultation will include methods for integrating projects into the grid, maintenance of wind farms, as well as problems related to the environmental impact of projects with wind turbines.