In the second of a three-part series looking at renewable energy sources, Jersey Electricity chief executive Chris Ambler discusses the future of wind farms for the Island. By Tom Innes
AS the project to construct a brand-new wind farm off the Brittany coast, little more than 20 miles from Jersey, moves into its final year, the head of Jersey Electricity has re-emphasised his desire for the Island to explore ‘with vigour’ the opportunity for a similar scheme.
With the St Brieuc project due to be generating electricity for the French grid by the end of 2023, chief executive Chris Ambler said Jersey Electricity wanted to pursue ‘a significant opportunity’ within the Island’s territorial waters.
The utility company is looking to work with new Environment Minister Jonathan Renouf and his ministerial colleagues towards establishing the scope for a project which he hoped could be taken forward within the next decade and become a generator of income for the Island.
He said: ‘We’ve been looking at this for a number of years, but there’s a significant opportunity with the new government, and it’s been encouraging to see the levels of focus brought to this, not just by the Environment Minister, but more broadly across the Council of Ministers.’
Mr Ambler said the St Brieuc project showed that the cost of technology was coming down, while at the same time there was ‘upward pressure’ resulting from the global rise in energy prices.
‘There’s a real appetite to become more energy-independent, driven by what’s happened across Europe and the war in Ukraine,’ he said. ‘We believe that offshore wind is by far the most significant opportunity for energy diversification for Jersey over the medium-term, by which I mean the next eight to ten years.
‘We think we should be pursuing this with vigour, and it’s important that we are in a position to establish the economic viability [of such a scheme].’
Although the overall cost of the project in the Bay of St Brieuc, which includes 62 wind turbines and an offshore substation and will generate 500 megawatts of electricity, is estimated at 2.4 billion euros, Mr Ambler stressed that this level of cost would not need to be borne by taxpayers.
He said: ‘There are a number of prospective developers out there, as well as capital providers – we need to establish the economic viability of a scheme and present ourselves as a Jersey team that’s capable of being invested in.
‘Partners won’t want to invest a lot of time, money and effort up front unless they can see that we are serious and that there’s an investable opportunity in Jersey – it’s important that we appreciate that they have choices in who to partner.’
Mr Ambler said that a project on the same scale as that being developed by Ailes Marines off St Brieuc could potentially generate three to four times as much electricity as Jersey would require for its own use, offering the chance to export electricity to neighbouring jurisdictions.
‘France is very focused on growing the renewable energy sector, and we [Jersey] have got good commercial and political relationships with France, in spite of the issues around fishing,’ he said.
Emmanuel Rollin, vice-president of Ailes Marines, spoke to the JEP during a recent visit to the Brittany project and confirmed that his company would be interested in exploring a potential opportunity in Jersey.
Shortly after his election as Environment Minister in July, Deputy Renouf said that looking at sources of offshore renewable energy was a key priority.
He said: ‘As Environment Minister, I’m very keen that we explore the exciting potential for green energy in our waters. There is a significant opportunity for the Island to become a producer of clean electricity, particularly through wind turbines, but also in the longer term through tidal and/or wave energy.
‘These projects may also offer the chance to collaborate with our neighbours in the other Channel Islands and in France.’
The former head of Jersey Met, John Searson, has also recently added his support to calls for the Island to set up a wind farm.
The Bridging Island Plan makes reference to an Offshore Wind Pre-Feasibility Study, which concluded that Jersey had ‘significant offshore wind potential’ and that extracting energy from 5% of the Island’s waters ‘would satisfy over three times Jersey’s current annual demand’.
