Zeebrugge to Add Eight Wind Turbines Totaling 42.6 MW at Its Vehicle Terminals

The Port of Zeebrugge, in Belgium, will add eight new wind turbines with a combined capacity of 42.6 MW to expand renewable electricity generation at its vehicle terminals. Preliminary civil works will begin this month, while power generation is expected to start from early 2028.

Of the eight turbines, three will be installed at the facilities of the Wallenius Wilhelmsen RoRo terminal, while the remaining five will be located on the premises of International Car Operators (ICO). At this latter site, ENGIE had already commissioned, back in 2020, together with ICO and Portfineco, an 11-turbine wind farm with a capacity of 44 MW.

The new turbines will appear on Zeebrugge's skyline in the second half of 2027, when the towers are erected and the nacelles and blades are installed. Starting in early 2028, they will generate around 115 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity per year, a volume equivalent to the average electricity consumption of approximately 33,000 Belgian households. The project involves three Vestas turbine models: the V150-6.0 MW, with a 150-metre rotor diameter and a total height of 200 metres, and the V136-4.2 MW, with a 136-metre rotor diameter and a total height of 180 metres.

The project is being carried out through a joint investment by ENGIE, Port of Antwerp-Bruges and Portfineco, a company jointly owned in equal parts by Zefier and the port itself. ENGIE will be responsible for the operational management of the turbines through the joint venture Seagull I. Vincent Verbeke, CEO of ENGIE Belgium, noted that the company operates 217 wind turbines in Belgium with a total capacity of 611 MW and that it is seeking new large-scale projects in port and industrial areas. Dirk De fauw, vice-chairman of Port of Antwerp-Bruges and mayor of Bruges, stated that with this initiative the port is moving toward its goal of reaching half a gigawatt of installed wind capacity at its facilities by 2030.