496 MW French Offshore Wind Farm Enters Construction Stage

April 6, 2023, by Adrijana Buljan

The Eoliennes en Mer des îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier (EMYN) consortium, comprising Ocean Winds, Sumitomo Corporation, Banque des Territoires and Vendée Energie, has reached the final investment decision for the Îles d’Yeu and Noirmoutier offshore wind farm in France and thus moved the project into the construction stage.

The first offshore operations will take place this summer before the construction work begins next spring with the installation of the monopile foundations, the offshore substation and the first subsea cables. The wind turbines will be installed in 2025 and the offshore wind farm is expected to be commissioned in the second half of the same year.

The 496 MW Îles d’Yeu and Noirmoutier represents an investment of around EUR 2.5 billion.

The consortium says the project involves robust international public and private financing, led by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and a syndicate of 16 banks: 6 French banks, 4 Japanese banks, 2 British banks, 2 Spanish banks, 1 German bank and 1 Dutch bank.

The financing is provided through shareholders-backed financing and non-recourse debt, raised with the support of Société Générale, who acted as the financial advisor to the project.

Located off the coast of Vendée, 11.6 kilometres from the island of Yeu and 16.5 kilometres from Noirmoutier, the offshore wind farm will feature 62 Siemens Gamesa 8 MW wind turbines, which the OEM will produce in its Le Havre facility.

The monopiles will be produced by China-based Dajin Heavy Industry, while Eiffage will deliver all 62 transition pieces, with Sif supplying the primary steel and Smulders manufacturing the secondary steel.

The Îles d’Yeu and Noirmoutier offshore substation will be built by Chantiers de l’Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire. Spain’s Navantia will deliver the substation’s jacket foundation and the associated piles.

French transmission system operator is in charge of connecting the wind farm from its substation to the grid on land, while Louis Dreyfus TravOcean will install the inter-array cables.

DEME has been contracted for the transport and installation of the foundations, wind turbines, and the substation.