Renewable

October 20 (Renewables Now) - The 487-MW SeaMade offshore wind complex in Belgium was officially inaugurated on Wednesday after having been operational since the end of 2020.

SeaMade, consisting of the Mermaid and Seastar offshore wind projects, was developed by Otary, a partnership of Belgian renewable energy specialists, together with Eneco and Ocean Winds, a joint venture of EDP Renovaveis SA (ELI:EDPR) and Engie SA (EPA:ENGI).

The inauguration was attended by public figures, among whom Belgium’s prime minister Alexander De Croo, Ocean Winds said in a news release.

Featuring 58 wind turbines, SeaMade is capable of generating 1.8 TWh a year, equivalent to the needs of 500,000 Belgian households.

Ocean Winds noted that since the end of 2020, offshore wind has accounted for at least 10% of Belgium's total electricity consumption.

It was announced last week that the Belgian government is expanding the offshore wind capacity that will be made available in the Princess Elisabeth zone in the North Sea to up to 3.5 GW. Princess Elisabeth will be the country’s second offshore wind zone. The first one, home to eight wind farms totalling 2.26 GW, was fully completed in 2020.