(Updates with details, background, comment from Shell andEneco)
By Toby Sterling and Thomas Escritt
AMSTERDAM, May 12 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell isin a consortium bidding to build two 350 megawatt wind farms offthe coast of the Netherlands, the oil company said on Thursday,delivering on a promise to invest more in wind energy.
Shell, bidding in the Dutch government tender together withenergy company Eneco and contractor Van Oord NV, willuse turbines built by Vestas if successful, the threecompanies in the consortium said in a statement.
Dutch media reports have said there are up to six otherbidders for the Borssele project, which the government plans toexpand later this decade to become one of Europe's largestoffshore wind farms.
Other parties named as possible bidders include Danishutility Dong Energy, German utility RWE, Dutch energycompany Delta and the province of Zeeland.
The economic affairs ministry is due to choose the winnersby the end of July, with a possible extension until September.
Eneco would operate the wind farm and sell the electricitygenerated, with privately-held marine engineer Van Oord buildingit, Eneco spokesman Toby Ellson said.
Shell's involvement in the project is a tentative steptowards making greater investments in low-carbon forms ofenergy, which it promised earlier this year as a slump in oilprices hit its main revenue stream.
Many European oil and gas companies are increasingly lookingto cleaner energy technologies to diversify away from theirtraditional, carbon-intensive businesses.
Italy's ENI announced on Thursday plans to buildrenewable energy projects in Italy, Pakistan and Egypt whileFrance's Total has established a gas, renewables andpower division.
"We decided to join forces early on to make optimum use ofour strengths in wind farm design, offshore project management,financing and technology," Shell said.
"We have substantial offshore expertise in the North Sea(and) ... managing large projects."
In the early 2000s, Shell invested in eight onshore windprojects in the United States and one Dutch offshore windproject. (Additional reporting by Karolin Schaps in London; editing bySusan Thomas and David Clarke)
