Make us dream / Watter

ENSTA Alumni is back with a new wave of student projects funded as part of the Faites-nous rêver program. Presentation of Watter, by Benjamin CATRY (class of 2024.5).

"In March 2024, we're setting off on a sailboat to make a documentary about offshore wind power in Europe. We'll be sailing successively to Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Scotland, England, Ireland and finally France. Along the way, we'll be visiting industrial sites involved in the offshore wind energy ecosystem, and interviewing key players in the field.

With Noémie BESSERVE (ESA 2023), Louis DENONIN (ESA 2022), Sophie GAMBIER (AgroParisTech 2024), we are leading the expedition under sail. Carole COUTADEUR (ENSTA Paris 2024 ) and Théotime DE REBOUL (ENSTA Paris 2025) will continue to produce the communication and support needed for this expedition.

We work withina real network of associations. Firstly, with Passe Coque, which provides us with a steel Damien 40. Secondly, Ocean Trotter supports our educational communication project on marine energies. Astrolabe Expeditions enables us to contribute to data collection at sea, with specially adapted equipment on board the boat. Finally, Planètes Sciences Ile de France is working with us to help 4th A students at the Chopin secondary school in Melun.

The boat will be launched on March 19. After a week of testing, we'll set sail from the port of La Trinité sur Mer towards Cherbourg to visit the Hydroquest tidal turbines. We'll then visit the Fécamp wind farm, before setting off for 6 days in April with a scientific expedition from the Belgian Museum of Natural History to study the impact of offshore wind turbines on marine flora and fauna. We'll then visit the Smulders Project shipyards , where transition parts, jacket foundations and substations are manufactured. Then we'll get to see a 15MW Vestas wind turbine at the Ronland site in Denmark. In Norway, we'll visit the MET Center, a full-scale prototype test site , and then talk to the operators of Hywind Tampen. In Scotland's Moray Bay, we're lucky enough to be able to visit three Ocean Winds wind farms in operation.

We interviewed a number of players in the sector in France, representing different interests but each contributing their own expertise and vision of the industry (Armateurs de France, ADEME, FNE, Surfrider, the Pays de la Loire region, ENYM, etc.). We will continue this work in each of the countries we visit.

On Monday March 18, we took to the stage at the WIE CIGRE to share our experience and promote inclusion alongside leading French sportswomen and engineers.

Several sponsors have put their trust in us, but we still need help to finalize our budget. You can help us via Ulule, but also by becoming one of our sponsors! This is your chance to showcase the beauty and challenges of the industry through the work of 4 passionate young engineers on an extraordinary sporting journey. We need to hear from you, and we'd love to discover and share what you're doing on your industrial site! So don't hesitate to contact us at contact.watter[@]gmail.com."