EDF Renewables, Enbridge and wpd Start Construction of the Fecamp Offshore Wind Farm

EDF Renewables, a subsidiary of the EDF Group, Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) (NYSE:ENB), a leading energy infrastructure company in North America, and wpd, a European renewable energy company, announced today the launch of the Fécamp offshore wind farm following the finalisation of financing agreements between the consortium and its financial partners during the weekend.  

The 500 MW Fécamp offshore wind farm will be comprised of 71 wind turbines located between 13km and 22km from the coast of northwest France. Project commissioning is scheduled in 2023. The power generated by the wind farm will provide enough annual electricity to meet the power needs for 770,000 people, or over 60% of the Seine-Maritime department's population. The construction of the project will create over 1,400 local jobs in total. During its 25-year service life, approximately 100 local ongoing full-time jobs based at the port of Fécamp will also be created to maintain the wind farm.

The total project capital cost is estimated to be EUR2 billion, of which the majority will be financed through non-recourse project level debt. Fécamp offshore wind farm is underpinned by a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) granted by the state in June 2018.

The consortium has sealed equipment supply contracts with top-tier suppliers, including:

• Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) for the 71 wind turbines;
• Bouygues Construction, plus Saipem and Boskalis for its foundations; and
• Chantiers de l'Atlantique, plus GE Grid Solutions and SDI for the offshore sub-station.

RTE, responsible for connecting the wind farm from the substation to the coast and then to Normandy's electricity grid, will start its onshore work in June.

SGRE's new turbine manufacturing plant in Le Havre, at which construction is set to begin this summer, will create 750 jobs. The manufacturing of the gravitational foundations for the wind turbines will commence this summer at the Grand Port Maritime site, providing work for around 600 people. The wind turbines will be assembled at the Port of Cherbourg. These orders come at a time when the country intends to boost its activity after two months of containment.

This project has been guided by extensive consultation carried out over 10 years with local stakeholders (state services, elected officials from the region, the Department, coastal municipalities, and non-government organisations) and is supported by in-depth environmental studies undertaken with local environmental associations. Specific work was also carried out in close collaboration with the fishing industry to ensure the coexistence of various maritime activities on the site.