Offshore Wind Worldwide 2022 edition - Flipbook - Page 81
Offshore Wind Worldwide 2022
– except where due to the producer’s
default.44 This provision applies for
tendering procedures for which a tender
notice was published after 1st January 2016.
Nevertheless, the law dated 10 August 2018
has equally changed the rules for OWF
launched under the previous, first two calls
for tenders. Under article 58 of this law, RTE
shall bear the connection costs in conditions
similar to that applicable for the more recent
tenders. The grid connection component of
the purchase price stated in the first and
second tenders was therefore removed.
As a result, RTE currently bears the grid
connection costs for all of the OWF projects
implemented through a public tender. Such
costs are funded through RTE’s regulated
asset base regime, i.e., the general tariff for
the use of electric grids (in French: tarif
d’utilisation des réseaux électriques –
TURPE) which also happens to be paid by
the final users, through an incentive
regulation mechanism aiming to control
investment costs. The TURPE is regulated by
the CRE which checks that it only covers
RTEs expenses that an “effective” network
operator would have been exposed to in the
same conditions.
D. Consequences of delays and
disruptions of the grid connection
system
The producer/operator of the OWF is
protected against the consequences of delays
as well as disruptions of the GCS by the
transport network operator.
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In case of delays in the GCS, for the first and
second public tenders, the successful bidder
is entitled to receive compensation for its
prejudice resulting from a delay in grid
connection. The compensation paid by RTE
covers the financing costs and extra costs,
and extra costs of design, development and
implementation of the production
installation.45
For the third public tender (Dunkirk OWF)
and the following ones, RTE shall also pay
compensation to the producer/operator for
its losses incurred as a result of a delay in the
completion of the grid connection, provided
that such delay is not caused by force
majeure or by an event attributable to the
producers and impacting the connection
works.46 In principle, the producer receives a
monthly prepayment of 80% of its financial
loss corresponding to the electricity that
could not have been injected in the grid, but
still supports a deductible corresponding to
10% of its loss. However, the specific
modalities of the compensation stated in
each tender specification, if any, shall prevail
on these general provisions.
In case of disruptions of the GCS, as far as
the first and the second public tenders are
concerned, the producer can subscribe to an
additional service consisting in the repair of
44 For example, under the third public tender, the amount of the indemnification in case of producer’s default is a fixed amount going from
15 to 75 million Euro, depending on the moment of the withdrawal of the project.
45 Article R. 342-4-10 of the Energy Code.
46 Articles L.342-3 and D.342-4-12 of the Energy Code.