Anglo-French firm Eole-RES busy building Pyrénées 10.5 MW

Anglo-French wind farm developer Eole-RES has started construction of the first wind farm in the Pyrénées Orientales département, 20 kilometres northwest of Perpignan. The 10.5 MW Opoul-Périllos project, of six Vestas 1.75 MW turbines, will be the biggest installed in France to date. The number of turbines was reduced and their location altered to avoid sensitive areas identified by environmental impact studies. According to Eole-RES, the site has good winds with an annual average of 8.5 m/s at 60 metres. "From the very beginning we have had support from the two mayors of the villages concerned," says Jean-Marc Armitano of Eole-RES. Created in 1999, Eole-RES is a joint-venture between the French engineering company Eole Technologie (which merged with Eole-RES in 2001) and Britain's Renewable Energy Systems (RES). Last year Eole-RES inaugurated the 20.8 MW Souleilla-Corbières wind plant.