EIB to co-finance three floating offshore wind farms in France

Marseille, France (PortSEurope) June 28, 2022 - The European Investment Bank (EIB) has announced the conclusion of three financing agreements for installing and commissioning three floating offshore wind farms off the French Mediterranean coast. The projects are also supported by the European Commission. They are the first floating offshore wind farms to be installed in France and will help speed up energy transition. The projects were initiated by state agency ADEME (Agence de la transition écologique). Parc Eolien Offshore de Provence Grand Large The first project is being carried out by Parc Eolien Offshore de Provence Grand Large, a subsidiary of EDF Renouvelables, and Enbridge Eolien France 2 S.à.r.l (EEF2), a subsidiary of Enbridge Inc. and CPP Investments. An EIB €50 million loan supports the design, development, construction, commissioning, operation, maintenance and dismantling of a floating offshore wind project. It comprises three Siemens Gamesa turbines with a total capacity of around 25 MW. They are installed on tensioned line floats designed by SBM Offshore and IFP Energies Nouvelles. Located 40 km west of Marseille and 17 km off the coast of Port Saint Louis du Rhône in waters around 100 metres deep. The project is scheduled to come on stream in 2023. This floating offshore wind project, a technological first, is supported by InnovFin EDP facility NER 300, the European Regional Development Fund and the Southern Region. Under previous agreements signed in 2020 and 2021, the EIB is already working with these partners to finance offshore wind farms in the Normandy region in Fécamp (71 wind turbines with a capacity of 497 MW) and Courseulles-sur-Mer (64 wind turbines with a capacity of 448 MW). Eolmed Eolmed is developed by electricity producer Qair and will be installed more than 18 km off the coast of Narbonne in the Occitanie region. It is being financed to the tune of €85 million by the EIB, with a guarantee by the European Commission's European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI). Construction will start in the autumn of 2022 for commissioning in mid-2024. The farm will consist of three 10 MW Vestas wind turbines installed on semi-submersible barge floats. The turbines will be connected to the electricity transmission system by a submarine cable. PortSEurope: Port-La Nouvelle repositions itself as a centre of energy transition Eoliennes Flottantes du Golfe du Lion The third project is the Eoliennes Flottantes du Golfe du Lion project. Its two co-shareholders are Ocean Winds (a joint venture between EDP Renewables and Engie) and Banque des Territoires (part of the Caisse des Dépôts Group, or CDC). It consists of three 10 MW Vestas wind turbines installed on floats. The project uses the WindFloat technology developed by Principle Power. Located more than 16 km off the coast of Leucate (Aude) and Le Barcarès (Pyrénées-Orientales) at a depth of 70 metres, this floating wind farm has secured €75 million in EIB financing. It is also guaranteed by EFSI. Its launch is scheduled for the end of 2023. European Commission European Commissioner for the Economy Paolo Gentiloni said: “I welcome this EU funding for the generation of renewable energy in France. Thanks to this investment, three floating offshore wind farms will help provide people and businesses with clean energy. This is more important than ever, as we are working to diversify our energy sources and accelerate the clean energy transition.” EIB EIB Vice President Ambroise Fayolle said: "These three loans for the first floating offshore wind farms in France are fully in line with the EIB's strategy of providing massive support for the development of renewable energy and the energy transition in Europe. As the European Union's climate bank, our role is to promote and support innovations such as floating offshore wind turbines that provide technological solutions to effectively combat global warming. Through these high-quality projects in which leading public and private players join forces, the EIB is particularly proud to be participating in the development of a French and European industrial sector at the forefront of marine renewable energy." With the support of other financial partners, the EIB can contribute its experience in the industrial, technological and financial aspects involved in setting up complex pilot projects of this kind that use legal structures for non-recourse project financing. These projects won ADEME's call for floating wind projects under the French government's Investment Programme for the Future and are therefore paving the way for future commercial floating wind farm tenders that are underway or will soon be organised. Copyright (C) PortSEurope. All Rights Reserved. 2022.

EIB to co-finance three floating offshore wind farms in France

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EIB to co-finance three floating offshore wind farms in France

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DP World issues a “blue bond” in the Middle East

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