May 14, 2021 — The start of construction for 62 wind turbines off the northwest coast of France triggered intense protests from commercial fishermen who fear potential impacts on scallops and other fisheries.
The project off the Côtes-d’Armor region of Brittany brought out a May 7 demonstration by a reported 72 fishing vessels that maneuvered around the 457-foot wind turbine installation vessel Aeolus.
Dutch offshore operator Van Oord is installing jacket foundations for the 496-megawatt project by Ailes Marine, a subsidiary of Spanish renewable energy company Iberdrola. The developers successfully defended the plan against court challenges and the first piling installations started May 3.