EOLOS floating LiDAR deployed at Dunkirk offshore wind farm site

An EOLOS floating LiDAR has been deployed at the Dunkirk offshore wind site off France, where the Éoliennes en Mer de Dunkerque (EMD) consortium will build a wind farm of up to 600 MW of capacity.

The consortium between EDF Renewables, Enbridge and Innogy-RWE awarded EOLOS with a contract for turn-key floating LiDAR services with near immediate deployment following permitting success and availability of new-build and validated units by the supplier, EOLOS said in a press release on 20 December.

“EMD had a rigorous technology due diligence process in place from the outset, to which our team had to step-up and comply. This was particularly relevant to the suite of metocean data that our device obtains, raising the benchmark of data resolution and frequency of sampling. It also confirmed EOLOS’ ability to be commercially agile during a country-wide lockdown period earlier this year and continue to secure deals”, said Julian Harland, Sales Director for EOLOS.

Prior to Dunkirk, EOLOS completed a floating LiDAR campaign for Saint-Brieuc, Iberdrola’s offshore wind farm in the English Channel, and EOLMED, Total Quadran’s floating offshore wind project in the Mediterranean. This new project now makes France one of the most successful European countries of projects for EOLOS, according to the company.

France selected the EMD consortium to construct and operate the Dunkirk offshore wind project in June 2019. The up-to 600 MW offshore wind farm will deliver electricity to the French national grid at a strike price of EUR 44/MWh, Commission de régulation de l’énergie (CRE) revealed at the time

The project site covers a 50-sqaure-kilometre area some 11.4 kilometres off the coast of Dunkirk, where up to 46 wind turbines of a 12-13 MW capacity each will be installed, according to information released after the tender award last year.

The wind farm is expected to be built in 2022.