France to call tenders for construction of 600 offshore wind turbines

(ADPnews) - Oct 6, 2010 - The French government said it would call tenders for the construction of 600 offshore wind turbines near the French coasts within a period of 15 days.
According to energy and ecology minister Jean-Louis Borloo, the investment will reach nearly EUR 10 billion (USD 13.6bn).
The offshore wind turbines will have a capacity of 3,000 MW. Initially, the tenders were to be called in early September but they were delayed as the government needed to define the maritime zones where wind turbines may be installed.
Most of the zones will be located in the English Channel or in the North Sea. Thus, the wind turbines will be set up near the shores of Brittany, Pays-de-la-Loire and Languedoc-Roussillon.
France's decision to start building offshore wind turbines is ambitious as the country is seriously lagging behind other European countries in the construction and exploitation of this kind of installations.
As at end-June, there were more than 940 offshore wind turbines in Europe and none in France although the country has a long coastal line.
According to some analysts and observers, the construction of offshore wind turbines may contradict the development of tourism activities or sea fishing.

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