France to Announce Offshore Wind Tender Results this Week

As reported by Reuters, it seems that the winner of the 10 billion-euro ($13.3 billion) tender, intended for offshore wind power development off the Brittany and Normandy coasts, will be French state-owned power company EDF.

“The regulator has submitted a report which I’m told is quite positive for EDF”, Henri Proglio, EDF Chief Executive said, adding that he had not seen the report himself and that the final decision would be up to the French government. In addition, Proglio expressed interest in the second stage of the project, for which tender could be announced this month.

The first stage of the project, which represents the country’s first off-shore wind farm, stipulates erecting of 600 turbines of 3 gigawatts (GW) capacity. The second stage of the project is expected to double the capacity of the wind farms, amounting to 6GW, along with the overall value of the construction contract which will rise to 20 billion euros.

The French Government in an attempt to catch up with other European countries, announced a tender for five off-shore wind farms and at the moment three consortia are eligible for the project implementation, namely: GDF Suez, EDF unit EDF Energies Nouvelles and Iberdrola from Spain.

When asked to comment on the potential outcome of the tender and the ongoing activities, French Industry Minister Eric Besson told reporters on Tuesday that they are “deciding between three mainly French consortia. We’re discussing it with the prime minister. A decision should be made this week”.

According to business daily Les Echos, offer of the EDF-led consortium for four wind farms appears to have received the biggest support from France’s energy regulator, while the remaining tender for the fifth one, that received only one bid from GDF Suez consortium, could be cancelled.

[mappress]

Offshore WIND staff, April 04, 2012; Image: developpement-durable