Renewable Energy Systems Group (RES)(1) has now built over 4GW of wind energy capacity worldwide following
commissioning of the 50 MW Pays de St Seine wind farm in France(2), which was officially opened last week. The project brings to 4,037MW the total amount of capacity developed and/or constructed by companies within the RES Group since RES’s first project at Carland Cross in Cornwall, England, in 1992. The inauguration of Pays de St Seine, which was developed by EOLE-RES(3), the French subsidiary of the RES Group, was attended by regional and local government officials and politicians and more than 200 guests. The highlight of the event was a professional abseiler descending one of the 130 metre high wind turbines.
Located in the Bourgogne region in the Côte d'Or department, Pays de St Seine is the 14th wind farm EOLERES has built in France. The project comprises 25 Vestas V90 2MW turbines, which will generate sufficient pollution-free electricity to meet the needs of around 48,000 people every year. Construction began in February 2008. EOLE-RES has completed approximately 300MW of wind energy capacity across France and has several hundred megawatts currently in development in the Mediterranean region.
Jean-Marc Armitano, CEO of RES Mediterranean, commented;
“We are delighted to complete Pays de St Seine wind farm, reinforcing RES’s position as a leading player in the Mediterranean renewable energy market. The success of the Pays de St Seine project is down to our experienced development team and the excellent working relationships we established with the local community, the turbine supplier Vestas and all other companies involved in the construction. We are pleased to have delivered the project to our usual excellent safety, quality and environmental standards and we are looking forward to kicking off another three projects in France in 2009, all of which will make a significant contribution to France’s renewable energy target.”
Dr Ian Mays MBE, CEO of the RES Group, commented;
"Passing the 4GW milestone of capacity constructed worldwide is a reflection of our continued growth in the face of the current global economic challenges. It took RES 14 years to build our first gigawatt and we’ve added another three gigawatts in the three years since then. This outstanding achievement demonstrates our successful business approach over the last 25 years, underpinned by skilled international teams covering every aspect of wind farm development, construction and operation. We are proud to have contributed to the success of wind energy as a mainstream technology that can contribute to energy security and carbon reduction, and at the same time provide valuable jobs and economic growth."
Four gigawatts of wind energy capacity is sufficient to supply approximately 2.2 million average UK homes a year and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 4.5 million tonnes annually(4). It is more than the total wind energy capacity currently installed in the UK. The 4GW is made up of 79 international projects including the recently completed Lynn and Inner Dowsing offshore wind farm in England, built by RES for Centrica and currently the world’s largest offshore wind farm at 194MW. The 4GW comprises 2,639 turbines ranging in size from a 225kW model at the RES Group’s head office to the 3.6 MW turbines recently installed at Lynn and Inner Dowsing.
Background
1. UK-based RES Group (www.res-group.com) is one of the world’s leading independent renewable energy companies involved in the development, construction and operation of wind farms across Europe, North America and Australia. Part of the Sir Robert McAlpine group of construction and engineering companies, RES has to date completed over 4,000MW of wind energy capacity worldwide and is active in key international markets including North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
2. Pays de St Seine wind farm is located in the Bourgogne region in Cote d’Or (21). Its 25 turbines are spread over the municipalities of Bligny le Sec, Saint Martin du Mont, Turcey and Villotte Saint Seine, 30 km from Dijon.
3. EOLE-RES is a subsidiary of RES Mediterranée SAS, created in 2008 to lead the development, financing construction and operation of wind farms, photovoltaic power stations and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants across the Mediterranean basin and in the Middle East for the RES Group. Through EOLE-RES, RES Mediterranée is one of the largest operators on the French market, behind more than 300MW of installed wind energy capacity. EOLE-RES has a portfolio of wind farms at different stages of development, representing a potential installed capacity of more than 2,000MW, as well as 150MW of solar power projects under development. Based in Avignon, RES Mediterranée employs more than 60 people.
4. This is based on UK household electricity consumption and UK national average electricity generating mix. In calculating homes supplied, we have assumed an average UK household electricity consumption of 4700 kWh per annum. In calculating carbon dioxide emissions savings, we have assumed a CO2 offset of 430g/kWh. Wind benefits the environment by reducing the demand for other sources of electricity, thereby replacing significant amounts of brown electricity with green. The UK’s electricity generating mix will change over time, making it impossible to give a precise estimate of the future savings.
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