Floatgen is the first wind turbine to be installed off the French coast. Equipped with a floating foundation designed by the French expert, Ideol, and built by Bouygues Travaux Publics in Saint- Nazaire Port, it will be installed on the Centrale Nantes offshore test site, SEM-REV, off the coast from Le Croisic. The construction was officially launched today at a ceremony organised on the side-lines of the annual Renewable Marine Energies conference.
Biarritz, 1st June 2016 – There are over 3000 offshore wind turbines around the world – the overwhelming majority of which are “fixed” i.e. attached to the seabed, but none as yet in France.
Backed by a European consortium of seven companies and research bodies, Floatgen is leading the way with several firsts. The first offshore wind turbine in France – the blades of this 2MW turbine are set to rotate for the first time in 2017, much earlier than for a fixed turbine – but, also the first full- scale demonstrator of the ring-shaped floating foundation developed and patented by Ideol.
