Drilling operations for the construction of the wind farm in the bay of Saint-Brieuc resume this Saturday, three days after a hydraulic fluid spill that had suspended work, announced the project leader, Ailes Marines.
After several helicopter overflights of the area, "the crews did not notice any presence of iridescence or slick in the marine environment," Ailes Marines, a subsidiary of the Spanish group Iberdrola, said in a press release.
“In addition to the helicopter checks, three surveillance vessels intervened in accordance with the protocol to search for traces of iridescence on the surface, deploy absorbent devices when necessary and take samples of seawater,” adds the group.
"The speed and the quality of the means deployed made it possible to contain the incident", continues Ailes Marines, specifying that the decision to resume operations was made "with the agreement of the maritime prefecture".
Commissioning scheduled for the end of 2023
Owned by the Dutch company Van Oord, the ship Aeolus, which is to build the piles for the foundations of the wind farm, had already experienced, in mid-June, a leak estimated at 170 liters of hydraulic oil.
The vessel then returned to its home port in the Netherlands for repair and verification work.
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The wind farm of the bay of Saint-Brieuc, which arouses strong opposition from coastal fishermen, must be erected 16.3 km from the coast.
With a total capacity of 496 MW, with 62 wind turbines, it is supposed to produce 1,820 GWh per year, the equivalent of the annual electricity consumption of 835,000 inhabitants, according to Ailes Marines.
Its commissioning is scheduled for the end of 2023.