Regulatory Other

On 2 April 2026, Ministers Maud Bregeon (Energy) and Roland Lescure (Economy) officially launched the combined AO9/AO10 offshore wind tender during a visit to Vendée, under the PPE3 renewable-energy programming. The combined procedure — the largest single offshore-wind procurement ever announced in France — covers approximately 10 GW (5 GW fixed-bottom + 5 GW floating) across seven coastal zones: Fécamp-Grand-Large, Bretagne-Nord-Ouest, Bretagne-Sud, Oléron, Narbonnaise Sud Hérault, Golfe du Lion Centre, and Golfe de Fos. For the Bretagne Nord-Ouest (BNO) lot the launch formally fixed the project at 1.2 GW floating (revised down from the 2 GW initially envisaged in the 17 October 2024 decision) on a 235 km² area off the north coast of Finistère, straddling the 12-nautical-mile territorial-waters limit — the capacity reduction was justified by coexistence requirements with professional fishing and other constraints. The tariff objective averages below €100/MWh across the lot; for the first time the cahier des charges incorporates resilience criteria drawn from the EU Net Zero Industry Act. Winner designation is targeted for end 2026 or early 2027. Cumulative economic benefits of the package are estimated at approximately €37 billion.