FLYING WHALES and ENGIE Green sign a cooperation agreement

On November 22, 2022, Mrs. Michèle Renaud, Marketing, Sales and Communication Director of FLYING WHALES and Mrs. Christine LAFAIX, Offers, Customers and Innovation Director of ENGIE Green signed, during the Salon des Maires et des Collectivités Locales 2022 (2022 Mayors and Local Authorities Exhibition), a partnership agreement to study the transport of large components of wind farms by airship.

As part of its efforts to accelerate the development of renewable energies and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, ENGIE Green is launching a partnership with the French company FLYING WHALES for the transportation of wind turbine blades by air. The transport of other types of loads, for the solar sector, could also be part of the scope of this partnership.

FLYING WHALES and its industrial consortium are developing the LCA60T aeronautical program, a 200-meter-long, 50-meter-diameter airship for transporting large or heavy loads up to 60 tons. The first airship will fly in 2025. Air transport of the largest components such as blades would reduce the carbon footprint of wind farm construction sites and avoid the use of roads, which can be problematic in the most remote areas.

Christine Lafaix, Director of Customer Services and Innovation, commented: "Exploring all the opportunities offered by airship transport is to bet on innovation to further improve the environmental performance of our facilities. This partnership is precisely in line with our TED LABEL, Sustainable Energy Transition, and its commitments to the fight against climate change.

Michèle Renaud said: "Whatever their sector of activity, the impact on the environment is now much more than a major issue for companies, it is an absolute emergency. Our airship will be able to transport up to 60 tons of cargo; loading and unloading will be carried out in hovering flight, thus freeing us from any ground constraints and considerably minimizing our environmental footprint: this is a solution for the future, perfectly suited in particular to the needs of the energy sector, which has to face up to the challenges of reducing CO2 emissions."