- France’s Multiannual Energy Plan (PPE 3), the country’s official energy roadmap, confirms a 250 MW allocation for tidal stream energy and plans a first government tender by 2030.
- This first commercial project, supplying the equivalent of the electricity needs of 400,000 people, supports the scale-up of tidal stream energy, which uses underwater turbines driven by tidal currents to generate fully, predictable low-carbon electricity
- Ahead of the future government tender set out in the PPE, HydroQuest is already preparing the scale-up of the French tidal stream sector through the Normandy-based FloWatt project.
- FloWatt will reach a new milestone this year with the start of construction. Commissioning is scheduled for 2028.
- FloWatt will generate each year the equivalent of the decarbonised electricity consumption of 20,000 people over a twenty-year period.
CHERBOURG, France–(BUSINESS WIRE)–HydroQuest, the global leader in marine tidal turbines, welcomes the inclusion of tidal stream energy in France’s Multiannual Energy Plan (PPE), the French government’s 10-year roadmap setting targets and tenders for future power generation. The plan confirms a 250 MW allocation for tidal stream energy, with a first government tender planned by 2030.
Thomas Jaquier, Founder and President of HydroQuest, said:
“Confirming the 250 MW target in this roadmap is a clear commitment from the French government in support of tidal stream energy. With FloWatt, a French project and the most powerful tidal stream farm in the world, we now have a first concrete reference to structure a competitive industrial sector, create jobs and showcase our expertise internationally.”
A predictable source of low-carbon electricity
Tidal stream energy harnesses the fully predictable power of tidal currents to generate competitive, low-carbon electricity every day. France has an estimated tidal stream potential of more than 5 GW. At full capacity, this potential could represent the equivalent of the electricity consumption of around eight million people. By comparison, this volume corresponds to roughly 35% of France’s onshore wind production in 2024.
FloWatt, the world’s most powerful industrial project harnessing tidal currents
Developed by HydroQuest and energy company Qair, FloWatt is France’s first tidal stream farm and the most powerful in the world, with an installed capacity of 17 MW. The project benefits from €20 million in funding from the European Union Innovation Fund, support from the French government through France 2030 (the national investment plan supporting strategic deep-tech and industrial sectors) and a guaranteed feed-in tariff for the electricity produced.
The project’s six tidal turbines will be manufactured in Cherbourg, Normandy, with the support of CMN, the leading French naval shipbuilder. They will be installed at Raz Blanchard in 2028, following the start of construction this year.
About HydroQuest
Founded in 2010, HydroQuest designs tidal turbines that harness the potential of tidal currents to produce 100% predictable renewable electricity. HydroQuest’s technology offers a low-environmental-impact solution with strong public acceptance, as its turbines are fully submerged and invisible from the coast. The company is developing the FloWatt project, the first tidal stream farm in France and the most powerful in the world, which will be commissioned in 2028 in Normandy.
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