A LARGE ship which has been a common sight on the horizon off Jersey’s south-west coast for months has now left the area after completing its work on a new wind farm.
AEOLUS – an offshore construction vessel – was used to drill and seal 62 piles for the turbines in the £1.8 billion project operated by Ailes Marines.
The wind farm has been producing electricity since 6 July, although it is not yet fully operational.
When it is completed, the facility will have an installed capacity of 496 megawatts, with the annual production of 1,820 gigawatt hours supplying more than 800,000 homes – or nearly 9% of Brittany’s total electricity consumption.
It will cover an area of 75sq-km – around two-thirds the size of Jersey – with the turbines arranged in seven rows 1,300m apart, with 1,000m between each raised platform.
A total of 35 of the 62 turbines have so far been installed.
Each one comprises a 90m mast and three 80m-long blades and stands up to 30m above sea level.
The project is one of four offshore farms being developed by the French in response to global warming and the need to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and increase renewable-energy production.
The French government has set a target of establishing 50 offshore wind farms by 2050.
