The 500MW Fecamp offshore wind farm off the coast of Normandy, in France, is now fully operational.
The developer consortium of the wind farm inaugurated the asset in the presence of the French Minister Delegate for Industry and Energy, Roland Lescure.
From the production of its first megawatt-hour in July 2023, to the installation of the final turbine, the wind farm has been progressively connected to the national grid.
For the past three years, Fecamp has relied on a network of regional infrastructures and skills to help build the project.
This included construction of the 71 gravity-based foundations and production of the turbine blades, nacelles and generators in Le Havre, and pre-assembly of components in Cherbourg.
In all, the project involved about 3000 jobs in the Normandy region and represents a total investment of about €2bn.
With the maintenance base located on the Grand Quai peninsula in Fecamp, around 100 local jobs have been created to operate the wind farm.
Day-to-day tasks will range from planning maintenance operations to optimizing electricity production.
Enbridge Inc’s executive vice president corporate strategy and president, power, Matthew Akman said: “The successful completion of the Fecamp Offshore Wind Farm marks a significant milestone for Enbridge and our project partners.
“Following the successful completion of Saint-Nazaire in 2022, Enbridge continues to advance the development and construction of several offshore wind projects in France, including the Provence Grand Large floating offshore wind project, and the Calvados, Dunkirk and Normandy offshore wind projects.”
“Thank you to our partners – EDF Renewables, CPP Investments, and Skyborn – with whom we have helped to grow the French offshore wind industry.”
CPP Investments managing director, global head of sustainable energies Bill Rogers said: “The global energy transition requires significant long-term and flexible capital, and we are pleased to be bringing our capital and expertise, alongside EDF Renewables, Enbridge and Skyborn, to this flagship infrastructure project.”
EDF group chairman and chief executive Luc Rémont said: “We are very proud to inaugurate the first offshore wind farm in Normandy, less than two years after the commissioning of the Saint-Nazaire wind farm in Loire-Atlantique.
“I would like to sincerely thank all the players in the Normandy region for their support, all the teams at our subsidiary EDF Renewables and our partners Enbridge, CPP Investments and Skyborn for the work they have accomplished.”
Skyborn chief executive Thomas Karst said: “Commissioning Fécamp is a significant step in advancing the clean energy transition in France and Europe.
“We extend our gratitude to our partners EDF Renewables for leading the execution and to Enbridge and CPP Investments for their collaboration.”
Throughout the development and construction phases over the past 12 years, the Fecamp Offshore Wind Farm project team has worked in close consultation with all local stakeholders, to help ensure shared use of the sea.
For example, the configuration of the array was adapted, with the turbines aligned in the direction of the current to allow fishing.
Cooperation with local stakeholders and environmental monitoring measures will continue throughout the operational phase of the Fecamp.