RWE’s offshore wind division opened a project office in Brussels yesterday at an event attended by Offshore Wind CEO Sven Utermöhlen and other senior management, supply chain partners, wider industry and dignitaries. Situated in the heart of the city, it will act as the base from which a team of RWE experts will explore the Belgian offshore market. Their first task will be to assess the bid criteria of Belgium’s next round of offshore wind development, the Princess Elisabeth Zone. The team, headed by An Stroobandt, won’t have to wait too long: The bid criteria are widely expected to be published in the coming days.

An Stroobandt, country lead offshore wind development Belgium for RWE: “Our decision to open a project office in Brussels is in response to the Belgian government creating an investment-friendly environment for the offshore wind industry to participate in the upcoming tender, ensuring the realisation of renewable energy production by 2030. My team and I are looking forward to fully engage with stakeholders while we evaluate the tender criteria as and when these are published.”

RWE’s presence in the Belgian North Sea dates back to the start of offshore wind development in Belgium 15 years ago with the Thornton bank windfarm, in which RWE has a 27% stake. And five years ago, RWE signed a power purchase agreement for the Northwester 2 wind farm’s entire production of around 800 GWh per year.

An added: “The North Sea offers great potential for offshore wind, partly because of the favourable wind climate and the relatively shallow water depth. It is a key region for RWE’s offshore wind projects, and we are currently constructing nearly 5GW of offshore wind in the Dutch, German, UK and Danish parts of the North Sea. My team’s goal is to add a Belgian wind project of our own to that list.”

Leading global player in offshore wind

RWE currently operates 19 offshore wind farms globally. The company aims to triple its global offshore wind capacity from 3.3 GW today to 10 GW by 2030.

As of 2020, a total capacity of 2.261 MW of offshore wind power is operational in the Belgian part of the North Sea. In 2021 the Belgian government decided for a phased increase in offshore wind production, of up to 3.5 GW in the Princess Elisabeth Zone, which covers an area of 285 km².

The tender for the first offshore wind farm in the Princess Elisabeth Zone will officially open when the Belgian government publishes the tender criteria, which is widely expected before the end of the month. The first new offshore wind farm is expected to start generating electricity from 2029.

Pictures of the office opening event are available at RWE’s media database (credit: RWE).