French floater picks MHI Vestas V164-10.0MW wind turbines

MHI Vestas Offshore Wind is to supply three V164-10.0MW turbines for the EolMed floating project in the Mediterranean Sea near Gruissan in the Aude region

by Andrew McCorkell 5 October 2020

MHI Vestas has 160MW in V164 orders for floating projects

Qair (formerly known as Quadran Énergies Marines) has placed an order with MHI Vestas Offshore Wind to supply three V164-10.0MW turbines for the 30MW EolMed (Le Gruissan) pilot project.

The project will see the turbines installed on Ideol’s foundation in the Mediterranean Sea, about 18km off the coast of Gruissan in the Aude region in south-central France.

It is the second floating project to use the 10MW model of the V164. More than 160MW of V164 orders are planned for floating wind so far. 

MHI Vestas CEO, Philippe Kavafyan said: “The EolMed project adds a significant building block as we will deploy our V164-10.0 MW turbine atop Ideol’s floating barge foundation."

Technology such as Ideol’s patented damping pool foundation and MHI Vestas’ V164-10.0 MW turbine will allow a quicker route to market for floating wind projects in Europe and Asia, officials at MHI Vestas said.  

The 30MW EolMed project is the third floating offshore wind project for MHI Vestas in France, the sixth overall and comes on the back of announcements for Groix & Belle Ile and Eoliennes Flottantes du golfe du Lion (EFGL).