Educational visit dedicated to marine renewable energies for around one hundred students from ENSTA and the Pierre Loti maritime high school in Paimpol to the wind farm in the bay of St Brieuc, organised by Iberdrola France and the Brittany Region.

In a context of decarbonization and energy sovereignty
, offshore wind development is a high-
potential lever for achieving a decarbonized energy mix. France has
committed to having 40 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2050. The region
already hosts 50% of national R&D in marine renewable energy
. The sector will continue its investments in R&D and in
training a highly qualified workforce to reach this
objective.
Furthermore, convinced of the urgent need to develop marine renewable energy
off the coast of a maritime territory like Brittany, the region welcomed and supported Iberdrola from the outset

Saint-Brieuc Bay wind
farm operational on the French coast, which is expected to have around twenty upon
completion of current and future projects.

The Binic-Étables control center monitors and manages the electricity production and maintenance of the power plant 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It plays a crucial role in monitoring and optimizing its performance to guarantee a continuous and reliable supply of renewable energy.

Initially, some of the work is carried out in coordination with the teams of the service vessel (SOV) Goëlo Enabler based in the port of Saint-Malo. Subsequently, these activities will be transferred to the port of Armor in Saint-Quay-Portrieux.

Following consultations with users and local stakeholders, the port of Saint-Quay-Portrieux will accommodate vessels responsible for daily maintenance. To house them, port development work will be financed by the company Ailes Marines – Iberdrola, for the benefit of the Côtes-d'Armor department, which owns the port and is responsible for carrying out the project.

With its 62 wind turbines installed over an area of ​​75 km², the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm with a total capacity of 496 MW produces approximately 1,820 GWh/year, which represents approximately 9% of the electricity consumption of Brittany, or the equivalent of 835,000 people.

By offering a visit to the Saint-Brieuc Bay wind farm to 60 engineering students specializing in "naval architecture and platform design", 30 vocational high school students in the first year Marine Electromechanics and the first year of Maritime Business Management - who will work on liaison vessels or the maintenance of wind turbine installations - and their teachers, Iberdrola invites them to an immersion in the heart of the marine renewable energy industry and its technical challenges.

The description of the different stages the teams went through, the structures of the 62 wind turbines installed, and their connection to the mainland particularly interested engineering students, high school students and teachers.

The visit is part of the programs offered in schools to encourage students and high schoolers to reflect on their career plans, and it took on particular significance on April 30th by connecting high school students with future engineers who will work together in the industrial and maritime sectors. Iberdrola presented them with careers geared towards a sustainable future, inspiring the young men and women gathered there.

As the developer, builder, and operator of the wind farm, through its subsidiary Ailes Marines , Iberdrola France has been interested for several years in the marine engineering skills of engineers trained at ENSTA, recognizing their ability to meet the R&D needs of the marine renewable energy sector. It signed a partnership agreement with ENSTA in June 2024, which includes various activities such as site visits. Following the merger of ENSTA Paris and ENSTA Bretagne on January 1, 2025, the partnership has since expanded to encompass both campuses that now comprise ENSTA .

The training programs concerned are engineering degrees in naval architecture as well as training courses dedicated to marine renewable energies (MRE):

• ENSTA Bretagne engineering degrees, specializing in "naval architecture": student or apprentice status, in 3 years after bac+2.

• Specialized Master's degree in EMR project pilots awarded in Brest by ENSTA, the Naval School and IMT Atlantique (1 year after bac+5).

• And the new OFFWIND master's program at the Institut Polytechnique de Paris, dedicated to R&D in floating wind power. It opens in the fall of 2025 and includes a year of training at Paris-Saclay (master 1) delivered on the campuses of ENSTA and ENPC (Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées), followed by a year of master 2 on the Brest campus of ENSTA.

As the developer, builder, and operator of the wind farm, through its subsidiary Ailes Marines , Iberdrola France has been interested for several years in the marine engineering skills of engineers trained at ENSTA, recognizing their ability to meet the R&D needs of the marine renewable energy sector. It signed a partnership agreement with ENSTA in June 2024, which includes various activities such as site visits. Following the merger of ENSTA Paris and ENSTA Bretagne on January 1, 2025, the partnership has since expanded to encompass both campuses that now comprise ENSTA .

The training programs concerned are engineering degrees in naval architecture as well as training courses dedicated to marine renewable energies (MRE):

• ENSTA Bretagne engineering degrees, specializing in "naval architecture": student or apprentice status, in 3 years after bac+2.

• Specialized Master's degree in EMR project pilots awarded in Brest by ENSTA, the Naval School and IMT Atlantique (1 year after bac+5).

• And the new OFFWIND master's program at the Institut Polytechnique de Paris, dedicated to R&D in floating wind power. It opens in the fall of 2025 and includes a year of training at Paris-Saclay (master 1) delivered on the campuses of ENSTA and ENPC (Ecole nationale des ponts et chaussées), followed by a year of master 2 on the Brest campus of ENSTA.