The European Investment Bank (EIB) will grant EUR 333 million to finance the Northwind offshore wind power plant. The financial close, which was announced yesterday, will cover the construction and operation of a 216 MW offshore wind farm to be built on a sandbank located 37 km from the port of Ostend on the Belgian coast.
This new facility will generate the equivalent of the energy consumption of 230 000 households and will be using the most innovative equipment and state-of-the art technology. The project is expected to be completed in mid-2014.
The Northwind (formerly Eldepasco) project is a large-scale renewable energy project that has high priority and will have a significant impact in terms of the EU’s and the EIB’s Climate Action agenda. It will help Belgium to meet its national and EU targets for renewable energy generation and will also contribute to environmental and security of energy supply objectives. These are all priority objectives for the EIB.
Northwind is the third (after Belwind and C-Power) non-recourse EIB loan in the Belgian offshore wind sector. Together this amounts to more than EUR 1 billion in support of Belgium’s drive for self-sufficiency in green energy within the framework of EU policy.
Pim Van Ballekom , European Investment Bank Vice-President with responsibility for financing operations in Belgium stated: “ The EIB is pleased to play a part in these challenging projects contributing to climate action and to economic growth. By financing the Northwind project, the EIB is again demonstrating its capacity and support to mature offshore wind projects that are ready for immediate implementation.”
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Offshore WIND staff, June 29, 2012; Image: Vestas