Following the announcement of France’s ambition to roll out floating wind power on a massive scale, with 45GW planned by 2050 a significant proportion of which will be floating wind power, as announced by President Macron the Breton port and industrial strategy has received €58 million in state funding granted to BrestPort to adapt its infrastructure to floating wind power. This confirms Brittany’s position as the perfect partner for floating wind projects along the Atlantic coast and in the Celtic Sea. The port and industrial ecosystem, which operates on a European scale, is based on a complementary partnership: Brest as a heavy assembly hub and Lorient as a base for operations and maintenance.
The Brittany Region has formalised the adaptation of its industrial and port infrastructure dedicated to floating wind power in the Celtic Sea and along the European Atlantic coast. This long-term strategy is based on the synergy of two major sites: the port of Brest is establishing itself as the platform for the assembly and integration of the floats, whilst the port of Lorient is set to become a strategic base for services, mooring logistics and maintenance at the heart of future offshore wind farms.
This positioning has just reached a decisive milestone. The InFloW project, led by BrestPort, has been selected as part of the call for projects under the France 2030 national investment plan. The French government is providing over €58 million to adapt the infrastructure of the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) terminal in Brest. This investment validates the ambition of the Brittany Region, which has already invested over €250 million in the ORE hub to anticipate the sector’s exceptional technical requirements.
In practical terms, the InFloW project will enable Brest to centralise the entire industrial value chain for floating wind power on a single site. The terminal will handle the manufacture and storage of giant components, the integration of turbines and complex launch operations. The planned investments will strengthen the quays and logistics areas to accommodate very large-scale industrial operations. By 2050, this assembly hub is expected to generate around 4,000 direct and indirect jobs and prevent the emission of 850,000 tonnes of CO₂, firmly anchoring Brittany in the European energy transition value chain.
> Video showcasing the future activities of the BrestPort ORE terminal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXPH7k6hlbE
As a complementary port to Brest, the port of Lorient as a base for operations and maintenance
Some 100 nautical miles to the south, Lorient forms the second pillar of this project. Strategically positioned close to the future wind farms of southern Brittany, including the Pennavel site France’s first commercial-scale floating offshore wind farm (250 MW) the Port of Lorient aims to host construction and installation operations, particularly for the mooring lines of floating wind turbines for the Atlantic coast market, in addition to maintenance activities. The Brittany region continues to support this development through the ongoing modernisation of its infrastructure and the creation of a dedicated port authority; the Port of Lorient will provide an operational logistics base throughout the wind farms’ entire lifespan.
For developers, energy companies and international infrastructure funds, Brest and Lorient constitute an integrated offering that addresses the global strain on port capacities suited to floating wind power within a qualified environment. Nearly 200 companies, mostly micro-enterprises and SMEs, make up the sector, and 50% of French R&D is based in Brittany. Operating across the entire value chain including metal and shipbuilding, maritime operations, design offices, marine science and technology… and across all technologies these companies already supply Tier 1, Tier 2 and beyond, with some 260 references, particularly internationally. All are listed in a directory available to clients.
