Wind power in Belgium

Wind power in Belgium depends partially on regional governments (Brussels-Capital Region, Flemish Region, Walloon Region) and partially on the Belgian federal government. Wind energy producers in both the Flemish and Walloon regions get green certificates but not with the same conditions.

Wind turbine in the Thorntonbank Wind Farm.

By year end 2020 Belgium had 4,670 MW installed capacity of windpower, 2,408 MW of which were land based and 2,262 MW of offshore wind power[1] producing a total of 10.8 TWh of electricity generation.[2][1] The percentage of electricity demand met by wind grew to about 13.3% by end 2020.[1]

Wind turbines are installed offshore and onshore, mainly in the Flemish and in the Walloon Regions. Brussels-Capital Region is an urban area which is not particularly suited for large wind turbines. Smaller turbines more appropriate for urban environments are being studied but until today no technology is deemed sufficiently efficient.[3]

Installed capacity and generation
Wind power installed capacity (MW) and generation (GWh) in Belgium.[4]
Year Offshore Land-based Total electricity generation all sources (GWh) Total wind generation (GWh) Electrical generation met by wind (%)*
Capacity (MW) Generation (GWh) Capacity (MW) Generation (GWh)
2000 14 16 84,012 16 0.02%
2001 26 37 79,821 37 0.05%
2002 31 57 82,069 57 0.07%
2003 67 88 84,643 88 0.10%
2004 96 142 85,025 142 0.17%
2005 167 227 87,025 227 0.26%
2006 212 366 85,617 366 0.43%
2007 276 491 88,822 491 0.55%
2008 324 637 84,930 637 0.75%
2009 30 82 577 914 91,235 996 1.09%
2010 197 190 716 1,102 95,189 1,292 1.36%
2011 197 709 873 1,603 90,241 2,312 2.56%
2012 381 854 989 1,897 82,923 2,751 3.32%
2013 708 1,540 1,084 2,147 83,526 3,687 4.41%
2014 708 2,216 1,222 2,398 72,687 4,614 6.35%
2015 712 2,613 1,517 2,855 68,138 5,468 8.02%
2016 712 2,340 3,048 ~82,500 5,338 6.47%
2017 877 2,645 3,644 ~82,900 6,289 7.59%
2018 1,186 3,408 3,196 ~69,200 6,604 9.54%
2019 1,556 4,645 2,278 3,474
2020 2,262 ~6,700 2,408 ~4,100
* Based on table without other adjustments.

Land based installed wind capacity grew to 2,408 MW in 2020 producing 4,1 TWh of electricity, while offshore wind installed capacity grew to 2,262 MW offshore installed capacity producing 6,7 TWh, reflecting the better wind conditions at sea and associated higher capacity factor. In 2020 the average capacity factors for land based wind power in Belgium was 18% and for offshore 38%.[5] Offshore wind power thus operates at its full capacity almost twice as often on average as compared to onshore wind power in Belgium.

Offshore wind farms in the Belgian part of the North Sea
See also: List of offshore wind farms in Belgium and List of offshore wind farms in the North Sea

List of offshore wind farms
Offshore wind power current and future installations by project, 2023[6]
Project name Nameplate capacity (MW) Turbines Date operational Depth range (m) Distance to shore (km)
Thorntonbank (C-Power) 325 6 × REpower 5M126 5MW
30 × REpower 6.2M126 6.15MW
18 × REpower 6.2M126 6.15MW		 2009 (phase 1)
2012 (phase 2)
2013 (phase 3)		 14–28 30
Belwind (Bligh Bank phase 1) 171 55 × Vestas V90-3MW
1 × Alstom Haliade 150 6MW		 2010 (Vestas)
2013 (Haliade)		 15–37 49
Northwind 216 72 × Vestas V112-3MW 2014 16–29 37
Nobelwind (Bligh Bank phase 2) 165 50 × Vestas V112-3.3MW 2017 26–38 47
Rentel 309 42 × Siemens SWT-7.0-154 7.35MW 2018 22–36 34
Norther 370 44 × MHI Vestas V164-8.4MW 2019 20–35 23
Northwester 2 219 23 × MHI Vestas V164-9.5MW 2020 25–40 51
SeaMade (Mermaid) 235 28 × Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD 8.4MW 2020 24.4–39.5 54
SeaMade (Seastar) 168 20 × Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD 8.4MW 2020 22–38 40
Total operational capacity 2262 399 from End 2020

Overview of offshore sector

By year end 2020 Belgium had eight active offshore wind power projects totalling 399 turbines and 2262 MW of power, contributing 6.73 TWh.[7] Offshore wind energy in the Belgian North Sea amounted to an installed capacity of 2,262 MW, which can produce an average of 8 TWh annually at 38% capacity factor, or around 10% of total electricity demand.

In 2021, the wind resource was less than usual, contributing 6.77 TWh (8% of the total demand of 84.4 TWh). The capacity factor (cf) was 34.4%.[7]

After 2022, offshore wind energy capacity in the Belgian North Sea can be further developed to around 6 GW.

The distance of the projects from shore typically range from 23 to 54 km, and the bathymetry of the water indicates the turbines will be based in waters typically between 14 and 40 meters deep.[8]

C-Power

C-Power (Thorntonbank) was the first wind farm operational in the Belgian North Sea. Its first construction phase was completed in May 2009.[9] This phase was a demonstration phase, with the installation of 6 turbines of 5 MW (= 30 MW).[10] The construction of the second and the third phases was finalized in September 2013.[11] A total of 48 turbines of 6.15 MW were installed during thoses two phases (= 295.2 MW).[10] C-Power has therefore a total of 54 turbines, with a combined capacity of 325.2 MW. The turbines generate around 1050 GWh per year, which can provide electricity to 300.000 homes.[12]

Belwind

Belwind (Bligh Bank Offshore Wind Farm) is a project by Parkwind NV. The Belwind wind farm has an installed capacity of 165 MW, which can provide electricity to 160.000 homes, and is operational since December 2010.[13]

Northwind

Northwind is a project by Parkwind NV located on the Lodewijk Bank and has a total of 72 turbines of 3MW each, with a combined capacity of 216 MW. It was commissioned in May 2014 and can provide electricity to 250.000 homes.[13]

Nobelwind

Nobelwind is a project by Parkwind NV. The Nobelwind wind farm was completed in May 2017 and is fully operational since December 2017.[14] With its 50 windturbines of 3,3 MW each, the farm has a combined capacity of 165 MW, which can provide electricity to 160.000 homes.[13]

Rentel

Rentel is a project by Otary RS. The Rentel wind farm has a total of 42 turbines of 7.35 MW each, with a combined capacity of 309 MW.[15] It was commissioned in September 2018 and can provide electricity to 300.000 homes.[16] Its transformer platform also carries electricity from SeaMade and Northwester 2.[17]

Norther

The Norther wind farm has a total of 44 Vestas turbines with a 370 MW total capacity. The Norther wind project is operational since 2019.[18]

Northwester 2

Northwester 2 is a project by Parkwind NV. The Northwester 2 wind farm comprises 23 Vestas V164 turbines with a 219 MW capacity. The project reached full production in May 2020.[19]

SeaMade

SeaMade is a project by Otary RS. The SeaMade wind farm is the result of the merger of the former Seastar and Mermaid projects. It consists therefore of two zones, the Seastar zone and the Mermaid zone, and 58 Siemens turbines with a capacity of 487 MW. The Seamade wind turbines started producing green energy end 2020.[20]

Historical data Flemish region
Year Capacity (MW)[21]

(end of year)

 Number of turbines[21]

(end of year)

199911
200143
2002118
20032214
20043823
20058447
200610559
200712669
200814880
2009203111
2010220119
2011312160
2012389195
2012389195
2013436216
2014567275
2015776363
2016901413
20171113486
20181203518
20191278543
2020 1361 573
2021 1543 619
2022 1748 672

At the end of 2022 there were 672 operational onshore wind turbines with a combined capacity of 1748MW.[22] The wind turbines are installed in small groups throughout the region, often along highways or canals and in industrial or agricultural areas. The operators of these wind farms are diverse. Some are operated by companies that specialize in wind power, others by traditional electricity producers. Several are operated by cooperatives. Finally a few are operated by organisations with a different core business as part of a Corporate social responsibility strategy.[21]

Installed capacity per province (as of 2022):[23]

Historical data Walloon Region
Wind farm in Estinnes.
Year Capacity (MW) Number of turbines Estimated annual

production (GWh)

200549.23571
200672.549126
2007122.977209
2008161.598297
2009319.7158498
2010441.6202704
2011524.02411032
2012562.62511198
2013599.32711239
2014639.72851330
2015675.13051504
2016737.13291408
2017835.43661567
2018909.33951360
20191036.04401534
20201050.0n/an/a
20211144.0n/an/a
20221242.0n/an/a

sources:[5]

This region is home to the largest turbines in Belgium. The Windvision (operated by China General Nuclear) wind farm near Estinnes houses 11 Enercon E-126 turbines each with a total height of 198.5 metres and a generation power of 6 MW. As part of the EU demonstration project 7MW-WEC-by-11, ten turbines have been upgraded to 7.5 MW.[24][25]

See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wind power in Belgium.

References
  1. "20210107_Belgium s electricity mix in 2020". www.elia.be.
  2. "First offshore wind energy zone in the Belgian North Sea fully and on time completed". belgianoffshoreplatform.be. 3 January 2021.
  3. "Windturbines" (PDF). Brussels Instituut voor Milieubeheer.
  4. "p91 IEA Wind Annual Report for 2015, "Energy Observatorium, Federal Public Service of Economy"".
  5. "Accueil". Energie Commune.
  6. "Projects". Belgian Offshore Platform. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  7. Durakovic, Adnan (6 January 2022). "Belgian Offshore Wind Farms Underperform as Lower Wind Speeds Hit". Offshore Wind. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022.
  8. "Wind farms in Belgian North Sea provided green power for nearly 2 million Belgian households in 2021". belgianoffshoreplatform.be. 4 January 2022.
  9. "Overview Phase 1". C-Power offshore windfarm on the Thorntonbank.
  10. "Windfarm layout & specifications". c-power.be.
  11. "Overview Phase 2&3". C-Power offshore windfarm on the Thorntonbank.
  12. "Project details". C-Power offshore windfarm on the Thorntonbank.
  13. "Parkwind - We believe in a sustainable future". Parkwind.
  14. "Nobelwind". parkwind.eu.
  15. "Rentel Offshore Wind Farm | About". www.rentel.be. Archived from the original on 2017-12-11.
  16. "OSTEND (BE) | Offshore installation Rentel wind turbines completed - Detail - Rentel". rentel.be. Archived from the original on 2019-01-08.
  17. Foxwell, David (2019-09-11). "Royal visit sees Belgian power hub inaugurated". Riviera Maritime Media.
  18. "Home". Norther.
  19. "Northwester 2 Goes into Full Operation". 14 May 2020.
  20. "Turbine installation at Belgium's largest offshore wind farm crosses the finish line". Otary.
  21. "SECTORFEDERATIE VOOR WINDENERGIE". Ode.
  22. no-reply@news.ode.be, Ode-. "Windsector bouwt 55 nieuwe windturbines in 2022". Ode (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  23. no-reply@news.ode.be, Ode-. "cijfers". Ode (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  24. "Enercon E-126" (PDF). Elia. 15 May 2009. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  25. "Pilot Demonstration of Eleven 7MW-Class WEC at Estinnes in Belgium". WIP Munich. Retrieved 25 December 2012.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.