Belgium sets new wind record

BELGIUM: Belgium's wind sector set itself a new high in output on February 6, when it produced 12% of the country's electricity consumption.

by Jan Dodd 17 February 2011

Part of Belgium's wind energy output comes from the Thornton Bank wind farm

Belgium's installed capacity currently stands at 901MW, of which 195MW is located offshore. It was able to achieve 12% thanks to a combination of above average wind speeds and low demand.

Deployment in the Flanders region has slowed considerably with just 20MW of new capacity added in 2010.

However, this should increase again as agricultural land is opened up to wind power projects under new regulations which came into effect in 2009.  

Belgium is committed to deriving 13% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020. This will require an estimated 5.5GW of installed wind capacity.