Official inauguration of SeaMade marks completion of the first wind energy zone in the Belgian North Sea

22/10/2021

In the presence of Prime Minister De Croo and two other members of the federal government, the SeaMade wind farm was ceremoniously inaugurated in Ostend on 20 October 2021. SeaMade is the most recently completed and largest wind farm in the Belgian North Sea.

The SeaMade wind farm was constructed by a consortium of Otary, Ocean Winds and Eneco. The farm has been connected to the grid for some time, the last turbine was delivered in November 2020. Despite restrictions in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the construction of the park was completed within the scheduled time. Now that the park has been completed, Otary will be in charge of its management, including maintenance of the 58 turbines. In total, Otary manages 100 turbines in the Belgian North Sea, representing a capacity of 800 MW.

The official inauguration of the SeaMade wind farm is the final step in the completion of Belgium’s first offshore wind zone. The 399 installed turbines now form a power plant with a capacity of 2.3 GW. On an annual basis, these wind farms together produce an average of 8 TWh, enough to meet the electricity demand of approximately 2.2 million households.

The opening took place in the presence of Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the North Sea Vincent Van Quickenborne, as well as Walloon Deputy President and Climate Minister Philippe Henry and Mayor of Ostend Bart Tommelein.

The next step is the development of the Princess Elisabeth area, the second zone for offshore wind energy. Recently, the Council of Ministers confirmed the ambition to install a capacity of 3.1 to 3.5 GW in this zone, where 2.2 GW were previously planned. With this, the government endorses the importance of offshore wind in the energy transition and is also committed to the many benefits in terms of climate, society and economy.

The opening was also covered in the VRT news broadcast.