The Match Starts on Port Logistics Operations for the Îles d'Yeu et de Noirmoutier Offshore Wind Farm!
The Rotra Mare called at Saint Nazaire on Thursday 5th December, carrying the first blades of the wind turbines that will equip the Îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier offshore wind farm. This is an important milestone in the construction of what will be France’s fourth offshore wind farm, which is due to come on stream at the end of 2025.
Since mid-November, the first components of the offshore wind turbines produced by Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy have been arriving at the Saint Nazaire port facility, which is the pre-assembly site for the Îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier offshore wind farm operated by the Company Éoliennes en Mer des Îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier (EMYN), a subsidiary of OW Ocean Winds.
Components Transported by Sea
Following the compact tower frame (CTF) pre-assembly supports for the masts, it was the turn of a consignment of 16 blades to be unloaded early in December. These 81-metre-long components from Siemens Gamesa’s Le Havre production plant were handled using the two LHM 600 and 550 mobile cranes, positioned to operate in tandem on the Quai de la Prise d’Eau quay in Saint Nazaire. The operation involved teams of personnel from Atlantique Manutention, Groupement de Main d’Œuvre Portuaire (GMOP) and Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port, working in close collaboration with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, commissioned by EMYN.
Several vessels carrying blades, masts and nacelles are expected to arrive in December and January. The nacelles, also produced in Le Havre, will be conveyed by roll-on/roll-off vessel to the Quai des Charbonniers quay. They will then be transferred to the logistics hub using SPT trailers. They will be using the heavy-duty roadway, refurbishment and reinforcement work on which will be completed in a few weeks’ time.
The First Rotations of the Vole au Vent Scheduled for the Spring
The components for the 61 wind turbines will be stored at the logistics hub located next to the Joubert sluice dock, before being transported out to sea by the Jan de Nul Shipping Line’s installation vessel the Vole au Vent in the spring of 2025. These wind turbines, each with a capacity of 8 MW, giving the wind farm a total output of nearly 500 MW, will supply electricity to almost 800 000 people every year, equivalent to the population of the Department of Vendée. The Îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier wind farm represents an investment of around 2.5 billion euros. The EMYN wind farm will take two and a half years to build and will directly employ 1 600 people in France, including around a hundred employees in the port-related professions.