The winning bid to build a 600MW offshore wind farm off the coast of Dunkirk came in at a price of just €50/MWh, the French government announced late last week, concluding a competitive process touted as good news for the European offshore wind industry.

A consortium led by EDF Renewables, Innogy, and Enbridge put in the winning bid.

On the back of the Dunkirk result, the French government announced more ambitious offshore wind targets for the next decade, confirming it aims to tender 1GW of offshore wind capacity per year up to 2028.

France's previous multi-year energy plan aimed for 2.4GW of offshore wind generation by 2023 and 5GW by 2028. If the updated targets are reached, the country will see 6.5GW installed by 2028 and 11.5GW tendered - around six per cent of the country's total electricity consumption.

The offshore auction concluded shortly after the results of France's latest onshore wind tender, which saw prices edge down to €63/MWh, from €65.4/MWh and €68.7/MWh at two previous tenders.

The project will see 150 new wind turbines installed across the country, capable of providing electricity to 268,000 homes, according to the French energy ministry.

Industry body WindEurope welcomed the developments.

"Things are starting to look more positive for wind energy in France again with the results from the Dunkirk offshore auction and the latest onshore tender," said CEO Giles Dickson.

"The Dunkirk results are excellent news for offshore wind in France and are further proof that offshore wind is a competitive and mature energy source."