Operating for the Directorate General for Energy and Climate (DGEC), Météo-France has selected Akrocean to collect offshore wind, wave, and current data for potential offshore wind farm sites in France.
The framework contract won by Akrocean includes several measurement campaigns that will be conducted on all the French coastlines over four years, according to the needs and the de-risking schedule issued by the French government.
They will be carried out using a fleet of floating LiDAR buoys, for a minimum period of twelve months. These campaigns can be extended for a further twelve months.
“We’ve had the opportunity to develop our oceanographic offering with the additional local content provided by Energie de La Lune. We will continue in this way, to use local maritime resources, which are necessary for deployments at sea,” said Marine Colin , Project Manager.
This is not the first time Météo-France awarded a contract to Akrocean. In 2020, the company secured a contract to supply floating LiDARs for future offshore wind projects in France.
France has set a target of reaching 18 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2035 and 45 GW by 2050.
The country’s first commercial-scale wind farm, the 480 MW Saint-Nazaire, was fully commissioned in November 2022.