The European Commission has approved a €11 billion French State aid scheme to support the development of offshore wind energy, backing three floating wind farms totalling 1.5GW.
The 20-year scheme, authorised under the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework (CISAF), aims to help France and the EU meet 2030 renewable energy targets while reducing reliance on imported clean tech components.
Each of the three planned wind farms-one in the waters off southern Brittany and two in the Mediterranean-will have a capacity of approximately 500MW and generate around 2.2TWh of electricity annually, equivalent to the consumption of 450,000 French households.
Aid will be awarded through a competitive bidding process, with one winning bidder selected per offshore zone. Each project will receive support in the form of a two-way contract for difference (CfD), calculated by comparing the bidder’s offered reference price against market prices.
When the market price falls below the reference price, the French state will pay the difference. Conversely, when the market price exceeds the reference price, the project developer will reimburse the difference to the authorities.
According to the Commission, the scheme includes safeguards to prevent overcompensation-such as suspending payments when prices are negative-and meets all conditions laid out in CISAF Sections 3 and 4.1.2.
To ensure long-term resilience, France has included supply chain diversification as both a prequalification and award criterion, aiming to reduce dependence on key wind turbine components from China.
The Commission concluded the measure was “necessary, appropriate and proportionate” to accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy and bolster key sectors of clean technology manufacturing in line with Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU.
The non-confidential version of the decision will be published under case number SA.115764 on the Commission’s competition website.