In 2014, three Belgian offshore wind farms (C-Power, Belwind and Northwind) produced more than 2.2 million megawatt hours of electricity.
Belgian Secretary of State for North Sea, Bart Tommelein, said that the production in 2014 is equivalent to the annual consumption of 623,715 households, adding that this is an impressive figure, especially since the Northwind offshore wind farm became operational in May 2014.
Further, Tommelein said that the capacity will double in the coming years with the construction of five new wind farms: Mermaid, Northwester 2, Seastar, Rentel and Norther. These eight Belgian offshore wind farms will have a joint capacity of about 2,200 MW. Some 50% of the total annual electricity needs will be covered by wind turbines from the North Sea, once all of them are installed.
“Our employment will benefit from the offshore sector as well,” he said, explaining that the realization of offshore wind farms creates 20,000 new jobs during the development and construction phase, with 800 permanent jobs during the operational phase.
Offshore WIND Staff; Image: itwpe (Northwind offshore wind farm)