In the Mediterranean, the first floating wind turbine of the Provence Grand Large project installed

“After assembling the turbine and its float”, the wind turbine was “towed 17 km from the coast, to its installation site. It was then secured to its anchoring system which ensures the stability of the float” , described EDF Renewables in a press release, saying that this is a “major step for floating offshore wind in France”.

This operation must be repeated in the coming weeks to install the two other wind turbines in this pilot park.

“The electrical cables will then be laid to transport the electricity to the station” of Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône, specifies the press release, indicating that tests will then take place, for “a planned commissioning of the park early 2024.

These three floating offshore wind turbines, with a power of 8,4 MW each, will produce the equivalent of the annual electricity consumption of 45.000 inhabitants, according to EDF Renewables.

With its 2.800 km of coastline, France decided to launch into offshore wind power in 2009. Floating wind turbines, a technology that is still immature but of which Europe is a pioneer, are establishing themselves in the Mediterranean where the sea floor is sinking quickly.

In the French Mediterranean, three floating wind turbine pilot farms are currently expected: Provence Grand Large; the EolMed project off the coast of Gruissan (Aude) promoted by the independent producer Quair with a 20% participation from Total; and that of floating wind turbines in the Gulf of Lion, off the coast of Leucate (Aude) and Barcarès (Pyrénées-Orientales), supported by Ocean Winds, a joint venture dedicated to offshore wind power owned by Engie and the Portuguese group EDPR.