First turbine installed at French floating wind project

By: Kaitlin Walsh

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Floating General Windfarms
24/08/2023 Siemens Gamesa, Provence Grand Large

The first of three turbines has been installed at the Provence Grand Large floating offshore wind project off the coast of Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône, France.

The installation of the turbine comes after its assembly last month. The floating turbine is the first to be installed as part of a pilot project in France and the first in the Mediterranean Sea. Once completed, the project will have a capacity of 25 MW and consist of three SWT-8.0-154 turbines.

The objective of the project is to achieve leading innovation and demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of floating wind turbine technology. The floating foundation not only has strong technical potential due to its deployment in very deep sea areas, but also environmental advantages, in particular a weak grip to the seabed.

Provence Grand Large is located 17 kilometres off the coast of Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône in waters 94-104 metres deep. The location of the project was chosen to host the pilot project due to factors such as the seabed reaching 100 metres, the presence of strong and regular wind, and quality port infrastructure and proximity to the electrical network.

The floating foundations used in the project are steel tension leg platforms that have been designed,developed and installed by SBM Offshore and IFP Energies Nouvelles. The electricity is transported through an innovative set of dynamic cables and are able to follow the movement of the wind turbines. These cables are connected to submarine export cables and then underground export cables which transport the electricity produced to the Réseau de Transport d'Electricité (RTE) connection substation on land.

As well as the use of innovative floating wind technologies, the project aims to contribute towards scientific knowledge through environmental studies. Provence Grand Large's turbines will be equipped with a set of high-performance cameras that will make it possible to monitor the species that pass near the machines day and night. This device is usually only used for onshore wind power, therefore the use of them on Provence Grand Large marks a world first for offshore wind power usage.

Provence Grand Large is a project led by the EDF Renewables group in partnership with Enbridge, a Canadian group specializing in energy, in through SAS Parc Eolien Offshore de Provence Grand Large.

Once fully commissioned, which is expected at the beginning of 2024, the project will produce the equivalent of the annual electricity consumption of 45,000 citizens.

For more information curated from over 275 offshore wind turbine models, including dimensions and wind speeds, click here.

About the Author

4C Offshore | Kaitlin Walsh
Kaitlin Walsh

01502 307037 Kaitlin.Walsh@4coffshore.net
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