Spanish energy company Iberdrola has completely acquired Ailes Marines, a French consortium which is undertaking the development of 496MW Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm on the English Channel.
Located approximately 16km off the coast of Brittany, the €2.4bn Saint-Brieuc wind project is scheduled for commissioning in 2023.
To acquire full ownership of Ailes Marines, Iberdrola has bought the remaining 30% that it did not previously own in the company.
The stake has been bought from Avel Vor, a special purpose vehicle comprising clean energy developer RES Group and French public sector financial institution Caisse des Dépôts.
French Ministry of Economy approves Iberdrola’s deal
The latest move comes after the French Ministry of Economy has approved Iberdrola to acquire the 30% stake in the consortium’s capital from Avel Vor. Financial terms of the deal were undisclosed.
Construction on the wind project is scheduled to commence in 2021. Upon completion, the project will have the capacity to produce clean energy required to power around 835,000 consumers.
Iberdrola offshore wind global managing director Jonathan Cole said: “The Saint-Brieuc project is now ready to get started on construction. All agreements are in place, the funding is secured and contracts are signed.
“Our detailed Industrial Plan will also support new factories and highly-skilled clean energy jobs in France.
“We are hoping that the final legal and administrative matters will be concluded quickly, and then this major €2.4 billion investment in a cleaner energy future will be ready to run full speed.”
The Saint-Brieuc offshore wind project will feature 62 Siemens Gamesa wind turbines, each with an 8MW generation capacity.
In late 2019, French cables supplier Nexans was selected by RTE France to supply and install offshore and onshore power export cables for the Saint Brieuc project.
For the contract, Nexans plans to supply 67km offshore and 93km onshore power export cables.
