Belgium: THV Mermaid to Construct Final North Sea Offshore Wind Farm

On Wednesday 27 June, Mr Wathelet, State Secretary for Environment, Energy, Mobility and Institutional reforms has awarded a concession to THV Mermaid for construction of the seventh and final wind farm in the North Sea in the region provided by the Royal Decrees of 12 December 2000 and 3 February 2011 for development of installations for electricity production from water, currents or winds.

THV ‘Mermaid’ is a complementary and strong partnership of Belgian companies and consists of OTARY RS (65%) and Electrabel, Group GDF SUEZ (35%).

THV Mermaid responds positively to this decision which recognizes the project as an efficient offshore energy park. The THV Mermaid project is innovative on several different levels. It will give priority to the most innovative turbines available at the time the park is constructed.

Powerful wind turbines, each with a capacity of 6 to 7 MW, will make it possible to achieve the greatest possible energy production on the available surface, some 450 MW. In addition, wave energy converters will be installed among the wind turbines: these high-tech buoys which generate energy from waves will provide an additional capacity of 20 MW.

Thanks to the combination of wind and wave energy, the project is not limited to an offshore wind project, but concerns a real multi-disciplinary energy park! By opting for innovative technologies, a substantial contribution is made to renewable energy production in order to reach Belgium’s climate targets.

This energy park will be built in the area north of Bligh Bank. This area, with a surface of more than 28 km² located approximately 50 km from the coast, is the northernmost part of the region provided for construction of renewable energy parks by Royal Decree.

Once fully operational, the wind farm will produce electricity equivalent to the annual consumption of 500,000 families, and as a result, 451,000 fewer tonnes of CO2 will be emitted.

In function of the awarding of the necessary permits and of the regulatory framework, the first wind turbines will be operational as of 2016, and the entire farm by the end of 2017.

Otary RS unites Aspiravi, DEME, Electrawinds, Nuhma, Power@Sea, Rent-A-Port, Socofe and SRIW Environnement.

[mappress]

Offshore WIND staff, June 29, 2012; Image: DEME