France’s latest onshore wind tender sees near-full allocation

Nearly all of the 700MW of capacity available at France’s latest onshore wind auction was allocated, with 37 projects being awarded a total of 612MW.

Although the full 700MW was not allocated, the auction saw more capacity awarded than in France’s last tender, in which just 404MW was selected.

The results of the latest tender – the first under France’s multi-year energy plan, the so-called PPE2, reveal a win for utilities. Such companies captured about 45% of total capacity, according to financial advisory firm Envinenergy.

EDF Renewables won more than one quarter of the volume awarded (156MW), followed by Enertrag (83MW) and Boralex (61.9MW) with nearly another quarter between them.

Out of the 17 bidders that won awards, three were first-time winners. 

The regions of Hauts de France (206MW) in the north and Nouvelle-Aquitaine (157MW) in the south-west captured 59% of the capacity, with 21 projects between them.

The new projects must be constructed within the next three years and achieve full commissioning by March 2025, unless they are granted a postponement due to litigation during the permitting process.

Auction regulator, the French ecology ministry, has not yet confirmed the winning prices in the latest tender.

Aggregate summary

According to analysis by Envinergy, a total of 204 projects for a total capacity of 4,262MW have been awarded in the nine French tenders so far.

Axpo and EDF Renewables have won the most capacity, with 452MW each. Overall, 45 companies have submitted successful bids. 

All French regions except Corsica have been involved, with the five regions of Hauts-de-France, Grand-Est, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Centre-Val de Loire and Occitanie together securing more than 85% of the total capacity awarded.