ALE, one of the key international heavy transport and installation firm in the world, has completed the unique deployment of wind turbine components for the first floating wind turbine in France at Saint Nazaire. This deployment is a part and parcel of the pre-commissioning operations of FLOATGEN demonstrator, where IDEOL contracted with ALE to carry out the electrical and mechanical completion of a wind turbine generator of 2MW V80 capacity on a floating foundation.

The foundation was laid at the Quai des Charbonniers, St. Nazaire, France. Each of the components of the wind turbine were picked up by a 1,200 t crane, positioned right in front of the floater device.

These components included a hub, two tower sections a nacelle, and three blades. To lift up the tower sections in tandem, a 100 t auxiliary crane was also utilized. ALE performed ballasting operations simultaneously on the foundation during the process of the lifting in an effort to maintain its stability. The ballast tanks, positioned at the corners of the floater, were supplied water by using 4 submersible pumps. The smooth and steady trim methodology that IDEOL defined, worked well for the transfer of the loads to the components flanges from the crane hook.

Once the wind turbine was installed on top of the floating foundation, the cables and the electrical components were assembled and connected. The measuring equipment and the client’s sensors and were installed afterwards.