Representatives from the Nantes – Saint-Nazaire Port have used the International Week of Transport and Logistics to provide an update on the expansion project which is expected to turn the port into a link between factories in the region and future offshore wind farms.
At this event, Jean-Pierre Chalus, CEO of Nantes – Saint-Nazaire Port, made a presentation titled “Offshore wind energy: ports welcoming a new industry.”
The energy sector accounts for 65% of traffic in Nantes – Saint Nazaire Port, and since 2009, several projects have been launched to support the emergence of marine renewable energy in Pays de la Loire. The objective is twofold: to both attract investment from major French and international groups while promoting the development of local industry.
Since 2014, the port has been working to set up a 12-hectare logistics cluster on the Saint-Nazaire site. Located next to the STX Anemos plant that produces the electrical substations for offshore wind farms in Europe, this hub will be dedicated to the reception, storage and pre-assembly of wind turbines destined for the 480MW Saint Nazaire wind farm in Loire-Atlantique and that of the 496MW project between Yeu and Noirmoutier islands in Vendée.
On the Montoir-de-Bretagne site, 30 hectares will also be dedicated to marine renewables. This industrial centre already hosts the GE plant that builds the Haliade 150, and the infrastructure will be adapted to meet the needs of the sector. The ferry terminal will be reorganised, and the industrial containers and packages terminal quay will be extended to 350 metres.
Further upstream on the south bank of the Loire, Carnet has been used for sea trials since 2012, including for the prototype of the Haliade 150. Ultimately, it is to host a 110-hectare eco-industrial park dedicated to renewable energies, and the restoration of natural habitat (290 hectares).
This park will complement the existing infrastructure and is to be connected by river to the Saint-Nazaire port and the Cheviré logistics platform in Nantes. It is expected to play a central role in the regional economy with the gradual emergence of various MRE technologies: floating wind energy, tidal power, wave energy and more.