French ecology minister Delphine Batho

After months of uncertainty, French Ecology Minister Delphine Batho finally announced last week the second phase of a call for tenders for the construction of €3.5 billion worth of offshore wind farms to generate 1,000 megawatts of electricity.

The announcement followed up on a promise made by French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault during a government-hosted conference on the environment in September at which he and President François Hollande promised a plan to kick-start the renewables industry in France.

According to Batho, the projects will create 10,000 industrial jobs. The wind farms are planned for construction near Treport, in northern France, and near the Noirmoutier and Île d’Yeu islands on the Atlantic coast.

The French government will launch an offshore wind tender worth around 1GW by the end of the year, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault revealed at the weekend. He made the announcement during a government-hosted conference on the environment at which he and President Francois Hollande promised a plan to kick-start the renewables industry in France.

The previous government under the leadership of Nicholas Sarkozy awarded tenders to build offshore wind farms to produce 2 GW of energy in April, and this new tender is being seen as the second part of the initial offer. A full second round should be launched next year. The French wind energy association said the announcement was “good news”, but called for the government to “rapidly envisage a third tender for 3 GW” if the country were to meet its objectives of producing 6 GW from offshore wind turbines by 2020.

Support for the onshore wind industry in France has blown hot and cold in recent months, but government backing for offshore was reinforced in April by its decision to award tenders to build offshore wind farms to produce 2 GW of energy. French company Nass&Wind Offshore, is taking full advantage of this momentum and investing in LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) measuring devices – a move it believes will give it a competitive advantage when the government decides to release a second offshore tender later this year.

LiDAR is an optical remote sensing technology that Nass&Wind is using to measure the speed of wind and turbulence up to an altitude of 200 metres – higher than the nacelle generally located 100 metres above sea level, says the company. Nass&Wind has now installed two of these devices off the coast of western France to try to accurately determine the power production potential of planned offshore wind farms.

Nicole Bricq

After a difficult few months for the French wind industry, Nicole Bricq, appointed French minister for ecology, sustainable development and energy, and now minister for external commerce, signalled her support for the sector and promised she will ensure that new projects can go ahead as planned.

The wind sector took a knock of confidence in May when France’s highest administrative court the Council of State asked the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to rule whether the country’s premium purchase price for onshore wind constitutes state aid. The tariff remains in place – it could take the court up to two years to make a final decision – but the referral has cast a wave of uncertainty over the industry.

François Hollande

Socialist candidate François Hollande may have won the first round of the French elections, but what are his plans for wind energy if he manages to pip Nicholas Sarkozy to head the country in the second round next month. And, if Mr Sarkozy manages to turn the situation around and retain his title, is he likely to support renewables during a second term as the president of France?

Unsurprisingly, renewable energy was not the main consideration of the majority of the French voters on Sunday. Indeed, despite the clear need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and Europe’s commitment to be leader in the fight against climate change, Green candidate Eva Joly received only 2% of the French votes. However, after the initial result was announced, Joly immediately called for her supporters to vote for Hollande in the second round.