TotalEnergies has been selected by the French government to develop and operate the 1500MW Centre Manche 2 offshore wind farm off Normandy.
The project, awarded through the AO8 tender, will require an investment of around €4.5bn and is expected to generate 6TWh annually, equivalent to the electricity consumption of more than 1 million households.
Power will be supplied at €66/MWh as set by the tender.
The wind farm will be located more than 40km off the coast, with electricity production scheduled to begin in 2033 in line with RTE’s grid connection programme. A final investment decision is targeted for early 2029.
TotalEnergies will act as operator, having partnered with RWE during the bidding phase. However, RWE has signalled its intention to exit the consortium subject to approval by French authorities, leaving TotalEnergies to assume all commitments and seek a new partner.
Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and chief executive of TotalEnergies, said: “We are very proud to have won this tender for the construction of the largest renewable energy park in France to date. It embodies Total’s transformation into TotalEnergies in France. This project will be the largest investment made by TotalEnergies in France in decades and reflects our company’s deep commitment to our country.”
Construction is expected to create up to 2500 jobs over three years, with 500,000 hours of work committed to apprentices and people in professional reintegration.
TotalEnergies will also launch crowdfunding to enable local residents and authorities to invest in the project.
The developer has pledged a €10m territorial fund for training, education and culture in Normandy, as well as €45m for impact mitigation and €15m for biodiversity promotion.
A European preference policy has been adopted for equipment procurement, with major components such as turbines and cables expected to be sourced within Europe.
TotalEnergies has also committed to recycling, reuse or repurposing rates of 95% or more for blades, towers and nacelles, alongside 100% reuse or recycling of generator magnets.
A Normandy-based project team will continue consultations with stakeholders to ensure coexistence with commercial fishing and regional integration.
Pouyanné added: “We are determined to mobilise our expertise to ensure this project is an industrial success while securing its acceptance by the region. This project strengthens our development in green electricity production to offer competitive prices to our French customers.”
TotalEnergies has invested more than €8bn in France since 2020, with nearly half allocated to the energy transition. The company operates 660 renewable assets nationwide with more than 2GW of installed capacity and supplies power and gas to 4.2 million residential and business customers.