Belgian marine contractor Dredging Environmental & Marine Engineering NV, or DEME, and French fabricator Eiffage SA have secured an engineering, procurement, construction and installation contract for France's first offshore wind project.
The consortium's contract for the 480-MW Saint-Nazaire offshore wind farm — owned by Electricité de France SA's renewables business and Canadian energy group Enbridge Inc.Enbridge Inc. — has a total value of more than €500 million.
The project will be built between 12 km and 20 km off the Guérande peninsula in western France, Eiffage's construction and engineering unit, Eiffage Construction Metallique SA, or Eiffage Métal, said in an Aug. 28 release.
Eiffage Métal will make 80 foundations starting in spring 2020, with the depth of the foundations set to range from 12 meters to 25 meters. DEME will begin the installation of these foundations in spring 2021. The project is expected to be commissioned in 2022.
"The contract reflects the technical expertise that enables us to deliver innovative solutions for the offshore wind farm sector," Jan Vandenbroeck, managing director of DEME's French business, said in an Aug. 28 release. "Some of the Saint-Nazaire monopile foundations will be fully bored, which is a step forward for the offshore wind farm industry and will open up new prospects for the sector."
EDF and Enbridge recently made positive final investment decisions on Saint-Nazaire, according to Enbridge CEO Al Monaco. The project was given the final go-ahead by France's Conseil d'Etat on June 7 after seven years of permitting negotiations and appeals.
