Belgium Approves New Tender Framework for First Princess Elisabeth Zone Offshore Wind Site

The Belgian federal government has approved a new regulatory framework for relaunching the tender for the first offshore wind site in the Princess Elisabeth Zone (PEZ 1) and set 1 October 2031 as the deadline for commissioning the first phase of the Princess Elisabeth energy island (MOG II).

The revised framework follows the cancellation of the original PEZ 1 tender in July 2025 after the government identified legal and regulatory uncertainties related to the support mechanism, state aid approval, the delivery schedule for the energy island and the required onshore grid reinforcements.

“A year ago, we made a difficult but necessary decision. We did not opt ​​for speed for speed’s sake, but for a tender that holds up legally, gives investors confidence, and protects the consumer. Today, that new framework is in place. The offshore sector is once again resting on solid foundations,” said Federal Energy Minister Mathieu Bihet on 18 July.

The new rules extend the maximum construction period for the wind farm from four to five years, remove the cap on the strike price and introduce a single two-sided Contract for Difference (CfD) support mechanism under which the lowest strike price bid will win the tender.

The government has also removed the mandatory requirement for citizen participation, while allowing developers to include such schemes voluntarily.

In addition, the tender has been aligned with the EU’s Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA), introducing binding prequalification criteria covering cybersecurity, sustainability, responsible business conduct and supply chain resilience. Under the new rules, at least 75 per cent of the project’s wind turbines cannot be manufactured or assembled in China, while limits have also been introduced on the use of Chinese-made critical turbine components and permanent magnets.

Alongside the tender framework, the Council of Ministers approved a separate royal decree setting 1 October 2031 as the latest date for the first phase of Elia’s Princess Elisabeth energy island to enter service.

According to the government, the offshore grid infrastructure and the PEZ 1 tender will now progress in parallel rather than sequentially to avoid further delays.

The revised tender rules will next be submitted to the Belgian Council of State for review and notified to the European Commission under state aid rules before the PEZ 1 auction can be relaunched.

The Princess Elisabeth Island, the world’s first energy island, is being built some 45 kilometres off the Belgian coast.

The Princess Elisabeth Zone comprises three sites totalling up to 3.5 GW in offshore wind capacity that will connect to the island’s infrastructure.

The first site will accommodate around 700 MW of offshore wind capacity, with the next two to be put out to tender planned to have an installed capacity of 1,400 MW each.

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