3 questions for Matthieu Pettinotti
Published on 12/08/2021
Matthieu Pettinotti is R&D Department Manager at EOLFI, a Shell group company.
This interview was conducted as part of France Energies Marines’ 2020 annual report.
What it the objective of the APPEAL project and what interests you about this project?
The initial objective of this project is to develop numerical tools to assess the socio-ecosystem issues related to a floating wind farm, i.e. the interactions between environmental and economic components. This assessment is important for EOLFI, a renewable energy project developer, and in particular for the Groix & Belle-Île pilot floating wind farm. The idea of conducting this project with France Energies Marines and a consortium gathering all the necessary expertise immediately appealed to us. This collaborative approach provides better knowledge of ecosystem impacts and enables us to share this knowledge with all the relevant stakeholders. This fits with our vision of our role as a developer: working with other stakeholders to identify the issues and impacts, and thus pinpoint the best location with the least possible impact. For the APPEAL project, we therefore proposed that the study be conducted in the area of our Groix & Belle-Ile pilot farm project in order to provide a concrete context for this study.
How has the project met your expectations so far?
APPEAL is the opportunity for EOLFI to step up dialogue by working with local stakeholders, including fishermen. Detailed procedures are implemented for the majority of campaigns on our pilot farm project. Several environmental campaigns (on the benthos in particular) have been carried out at the Groix site and an instrumented buoy is scheduled to be deployed. These measurements will provide input for our databases (biofouling, etc.) available for this site in order to reduce ecosystem impacts. From a point of view of ecological and energy transition, this socioecosystem study is very relevant for developing clean energy sources while protecting the ecosystem and its users.
As an industry player, do you find working with France Energies Marines to set up R&D projects beneficial?
Yes, France Energies Marines, with their multiexpertise, help us to progress on R&D projects supporting the structuration of the ORE sector, thanks to their capacity to bring together and coordinate key players from industrial and academic network at national scale.
Photo credit: EOLFI