Developers are encouraged to bid for two zones – the first off the coast of Le Tréport, in the northwestern Haute-Normandie region, and the second between the islands of Yeu and Noirmoutier, south of Brittany.

Both zones will be between 480MW-500MW, compared to the 600MW-700MW range previously indicated. The government gave no explanation for why the zones have been shrunk.

The zone off Le Tréport was included in France’s first offshore wind tender, concluded in April 2012, but it received only one bid – from GDF – which was considered unpalatably high by the government.

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