France has named a zone off the coast of Normandy for a 1GW windfarm and has begun the tender process to develop it.
The announcement was made by Barbara Pompili, the minister for ecological transition, on Saturday.
She said the windfarm would be 32km off the shore of the Cotentin peninsula, and would generate enough electricity to power 800,000 homes.
"This offshore windfarm is an major step in the energy transition, which is going to allow us to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and at the same time put us in a position to deal with all eventualities," she said.
The farm is likely to contain 65-80 turbines, each with a rated power of 12-15 MW.
It will be France’s eighth offshore wind farm. The government’s current energy plan envisages windfarms generating between 2.5GW and 3GW by 2024.
The exact area of the development will be decided during the tendering process.
Image: Illustrative photo from an existing Ørsted offshore wind farm in the UK. Wind energy will contribute up to 3GW to the French grid by 2024 (Ørsted)
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