EDF has welcomed the French government’s decision to award a consortium led by the company the rights to the develop the 600MW Round 3 Dunkirk offshore wind farm off northern France.
Together with partners Innogy and Enbridge the consortium will design, build, operate and maintain the project 10km off the coast of Dunkirk.
EDF said it will pursue its commitment to consult with the local community, as it did during the tender procedure, and the partners intend to refer the project to the CNDP – France’s national public debate commission – in the next few months.
The wind farm should come into service in 2026, the company added.
EDF director of marine renewables Beatrice Buffon said: “Our offshore wind project in Dunkirk is based on a robust, competitive and integrated offer.
“We look forward to continuing to work with local stakeholders to co-construct the project.”
EDF Group chairman and chief executive Jean-Bernard Levy (pictured) said: “We welcome this decision by the Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, which confirms the quality of the work done by EDF and its partners.
“With the awarding of the Dunkirk project EDF is one of the leaders in offshore wind power in Europe.
“It shows our strong regional roots and marks the consolidation of a genuine French offshore wind industry.
“Our winning bid was highly competitive, and this has notably prompted the government to double the offshore wind power targets contained in its Multi-year Energy Plan, giving new development opportunities for EDF and all participants in the sector.”
Dunkirk is the fourth offshore project that the group has won through public-sector tender procedures, after winning three projects in 2012 in Saint-Nazaire, Fecamp and Courseulles-sur-Mer.
Innogy said the project is at the “heart of the economic development of Dunkirk and will contribute to the development of industrial, maritime and tourist activity, bringing jobs to the territory”.
The result was also welcomed by trade body WindEurope.
WindEurope chief executive Giles Dickson said: “Things are starting to look more positive for wind energy in France again with the results from the Dunkirk offshore auction and the latest onshore tender.
“The Dunkirk results are excellent news for offshore wind in France and are further proof that offshore wind is a competitive and mature energy source.
“And it’s good the French Government have now said on the back of the Dunkirk result that they’re going to increase the volumes of new offshore wind in their energy plan – to 1 GW a year.
“They should specify how much of this will be fixed-bottom and how much will be floating offshore wind. France were the only country in Europe to include a figure for floating wind in their draft National Energy Plan for 2030.
“They can increase that now and stake out their claim for industrial leadership in Europe on floating. Or maybe other countries will want a share of the jobs?”