On November 19th2019, the President of the Atlantic Cities and Mayor of Viana do Castelo took part in the event organized by the Belga-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce. Stakeholders from the blue economy, donors, academics, associations and European decision-makers were present to exchange good practices in offshore wind energy production.
In this field, Viana do Castelo is a pioneer. Indeed, on October 19th, 2019, the first wind turbine of the WindFloat Atlantic project was successfully towed from Ferrol, Spain, to its destination 20 km off the coast of Viana do Castelo, Portugal. The project uses WindFloat technology,which allow the installation of deepwater platforms. Even though deepwaters provide abundant wind resources, they were inaccessible until now.
Two years after the construction of the first wind farm off Scotland, this site will be the second largest in the world and the first in continental Europe.
The Atlantic Cities Network also works to develop the blue economy through its Ocean Commission, chaired by Brest Métropole. Innovation and industrial cooperation are at the heart of the ecoRIS3 project.
If you would like to know more about these initiatives, please do not hesitate to contact the secretariat of Atlantic Cities here