Press release
Ailes Marines provides details and clarifications on the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm project
Saint-Brieuc / Paris / November 20, 2020 – Ailes Marines would like to provide details and clarifications on numerous assertions and untruths which are regularly expressed about the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm.
Ailes Marines reminds that:
● The wind farm area
The 180 km2 area submitted to call for tenders in 2011 for the establishment of an offshore wind farm off the Bay of Saint-Brieuc was defined by the State , consultation with all regional stakeholders carried out in 2010, under the aegis of the Regional Sea and Coast Conference, in which representatives of professional fishermen participated.
On this perimeter, Ailes Marines selected – after consultation in 2011 – an area for the park to be reduced to 75 km2. Thus, in order to limit the landscape impact and the impact on the commercial exploitation of scallops, Ailes Marines avoided the main deposit, located in the southern part of the call for tender area, by choosing to locate its project 6 km further north, on part of the secondary scallop shell deposit called Gisement du Large.
● The continuation of professional fishing activities within the park
The project was designed to allow navigation and fishing activities to be maintained within the park, both (
The Maritime Prefect is the authority which will ultimately regulate navigation and uses within the park..
● The impact study
The administrative processes defined in the regulations for the development of offshore wind farms in France are very demanding. They include carrying out an exhaustive impact study. In fact, Ailes Marines carried out the impact study of the project between 2012 and 2015 , prior . Since
● The presence of coral
Concerning the supposed presence of coral, it should be remembered that a study of the initial state of the site was carried out and integrated into the impact study carried out between 2012 and 2015.
On the basis of existing scientific data, in particular the public scientific inventories, the initial state of the site did not note the presence of coral in the 75 km2 installation area of the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm.
This initial state of the site was judged by the Environmental Authority to be “quality” in its deliberations of May 2016. The initial state was carried out by SETEC IN VIVO, an independent design office specializing in oceanography and the environment.
● Environmental studies
In April 2017, Ailes Marines obtained the three administrative authorizations necessary for the construction and operation of the offshore wind farm. Obtaining these authorizations is correlated with the completion of 135 measures, of which more than 40 concern environmental aspects. .
In addition to these measures included in the prefectural authorizations, Ailes Marines has carried out several large-scale complementary studies , such as for example studies on the impact of noise on scallops and cuttlefish, carried out by scientists from the CNRS, the National Museum of Natural History and the University of Barcelona.
The preliminary results show that the , The studies carried out in a natural environment as well as the results of other studies will be presented on December 10 to the members of the Management and Monitoring Committee chaired by the Prefect of Côtes-d'Armor.
● The purchase price
In 2019, in its report on state aid for the first 6 offshore wind farms developed in France, the European Commission recalls that following the two calls for tenders and the renegotiations of 2018, the (Saint-Nazaire, Courseulles, Fécamp, Saint-Brieuc, Yeu-Noirmoutier, Dieppe le Tréport).
These prices are completely consistent with those observed during the start-up of offshore wind power in each of our neighboring countries. In fact, these price levels reflect the importance of production costs linked to the establishment of the industrial sector as well as the risks inherent to each of the six sites. Thus, the , one : bathymetry up to 42 meters, tidal range greater than 12 meters (one of the largest in the world) and currents.
● Connection
In 2018 the ( This government decision was taken for the 6 parks developed during the national offshore wind calls for tenders 1&2.
● Dismantling
The wind farm will be dismantled at the end of the operating period, as will the site be restored. This is a regulatory obligation. As specified in the Maritime Public Domain Use Agreement signed with the State, a financial guarantee must be deposited by Ailes Marines upon commissioning of the wind farm, to prevent any failure to fulfill this obligation.
November
About Ailes Marines
Winner in April 2012 of a national call for projects with the Saint-Brieuc Bay offshore wind farm project, AILES MARINES is in charge of the development, construction, installation and operation of the park. offshore wind farm. It is a simplified joint stock company (SAS), 100% owned by IBERDROLA.
The key figures of the Saint-Brieuc Bay offshore wind project:
- 75 km2 of area
- 62 Siemens-Gamesa 8 MW wind turbines
- 496 MW of installed power
- 1,820 GWh/year of production, i.e. the annual electricity consumption of 835,000 inhabitants (heating included)
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