IBReizh program: Ailes Marines subsidiary of Iberdrola announces 3 selected innovative projects

A Call for Expressions of Interest to respond to the environmental challenges of offshore wind farms

In October 2023, as part of the IBReizh program, Ailes Marines , a subsidiary of Iberdrola, launched a Call for Expressions of Interest in partnership with the Pôle Mer Bretagne Atlantique. 

This AMI aimed to bring out innovative solutions to optimize the monitoring of biodiversity and to identify, collect and treat drifting objects in the wind farm off the Bay of Saint-Brieuc.

It was aimed at any type of company (micro-enterprise, VSE, SME, ETI, GE) or organizations (associations, NGOs, training or research establishment) which had to have all or part of their activity located in Brittany or Loire- Atlantic.

As part of the AMI, Ailes Marines has selected 3 projects which will be financed by the IBreizh program set up by Ailes Marines .

Ailes Marines will award a grant of up to €100,000 per selected solution. This grant will be allocated to the winners in the form of a grant amounting to 50% of eligible costs.
“These selected projects stood out for their strong link with current environmental issues. Supporting these projects in their development will enable the emergence of French players with innovative, decarbonation and sustainability solutions” commented Marie Thabard – Iberdrola France.

These solutions could ultimately be deployed on other offshore wind farms in France but also abroad.

Each solution provider had the opportunity to present their solution at the FOWT exhibition which is being held in Marseille from April 24 to 26, 2024.

• HYTECH IMAGING

The Hytech-Imaging company develops services resulting from the use of spectral imaging (acquisition system, information extraction methods, data visualization, etc.)

The project selected by Ailes Marines aims to develop an automated data acquisition system by aerial drone for monitoring biodiversity. Thanks to solar energy, its autonomy exceeds 8 hours of flight and thus makes it a perfectly suited tool to meet the objectives of monitoring biodiversity in the offshore wind farm in the Bay of Saint-Brieuc.

The financing of this project by Ailes Marines will enable the development of a competitive and low-carbon French environmental monitoring solution.

• ACTIMAR

Actimar specializes in carrying out meteorological-oceanic and coastal studies. The company develops real-time systems in the field of operational oceanography.

The project selected by Ailes Marines concerns the development of a forecasting and localization service for floating objects (using in particular a digital visualization platform).

The financing of this project by Ailes Marines aims to improve the digital platform and carry out validation tests of the models developed by the company, thus making it possible to predict the location of drifting objects within the park.

• EFINOR SEA CLEANER

EFINOR SEA CLEANER specializes in the design, manufacturing and marketing of multi-service marine pollution control vessels.

The project selected by Ailes Marines allows a waste collection vessel to be operated remotely and to prepare for its droneization. Innovation relates in particular to the automation of the collection and processing process.

The financing of this project by Ailes Marines will increase the company's skills in the depollution market and facilitate operations within the park.

The IBReizh program signed in November 2022 between Ailes Marines and the Brittany Region aims to support economic development projects in the Costa Rican and Breton territory.

This program covers 4 main themes linked to the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm: economic development, support for the fishing industry, the environment-biodiversity and tourism.

To date, 3 partnerships have been signed as part of the IBReizh program:

• December 2022: Signature of an agreement between Ailes Marines and the Northern Brittany Regional Shellfish Farming Committee (CRCBN) to finance a feasibility study of an Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (AMTI) farm project within the wind farm in Saint-Brieuc sea.
• October 2023: Partnership between the Pôle Mer Bretagne Atlantique and Ailes Marines for a call for expressions of interest (AMI).
• January 2024: Partnership between Iberdrola France and the Côtes d'Armor Chamber of Industry and Commerce for an assistance mission for the definition of a rehabilitation program for the Erquy and Saint Quay tide pools and the construction of a building for fishing professionals in the port of Saint-Cast.