First French floating wind connection starts taking shape

French transmission system operator RTE Réseau de Transport d’Electricité has started work to connect the country’s first floating offshore wind farm to the national grid.

The laying of the export cable has started to connect the Eoliennes Flottantes du Golfe du Lion (EFGL) wind farm in the Mediterranean Sea to the French national grid.

”Initiated by our teams, this work aims to create a connection that is both underwater and underground at 63,000 volts over nearly 20 kilometers,” RTE said in a social media post.

The 30 MW EFGL pilot project involves the construction and operation of three 10 MW floating wind turbines supported by Principle Power’s WindFloat semi-submersible floating foundations.

The wind farm is located more than 16 kilometres offshore from Leucate, Aude, and Le Barcarès, Pyrénées-Orientales.

The turbines, the most powerful ever to be installed on a floating foundation, will cover the annual electricity needs of more than 50,000 coastal residents, the developers said.

The wind farm is scheduled to be commissioned at the end of 2023 and will operate for 20 years.

EFGL is a consortium comprising Ocean Winds and the Banque des Territoires.