Hogan Lovell OffshoreBook 2023 230809 OnlinePDF - Flipbook - Page 15
Offshore Wind Worldwide 2023
cession will be limited to a period of 15 years
and, in addition, the government will no
longer set subsidy levels in advance, but the
concession bidders will have to include the
subsidy level as part of their bid in the competitive tender procedure, with the aim of
reducing the subsidy to zero in the future.15
For the existing domain concession, the
concession holders received a cable subsidy
which has varied over the last decade.
The wind parks that will be constructed
under the new concessions will in principle16 have to connect to the MOG-II (i.e., the
MOG extension, which aims to develop and
build new offshore grid infrastructure to
link new wind farms of the second offshore
wind phase to the mainland grid; the MOG
relating to the first offshore wind phase has
been operational since 30 September 2019).
It is not clear yet whether there will be any
specific subsidy in this respect (for these
wind parks, the traditional cable subsidy will
definitely not apply but the minimum price
of the produced wind energy will be increased by an amount covering, and therefore
15
corresponding to, the total cost of financing
the submarine cable (between the wind park
and the MOG) resulting from the considered
tender(s); this amount is still to be determined by the CREG17); however, compensation
mechanisms will be put in place to ensure
the connection to the grid which should provide certainty to investors.18
2.4 Timeframe for the realisation
of the project
A public consultation was organised at the
beginning of 2022 in order to receive feedback from all interested parties on the proposed criteria for the (yet to be placed) call
for tenders for the Princess Elisabeth Zone.
This public consultation gave an indication
of the criteria which may eventually be used
in the tender.19 The public consultation ran
from 17 January 2022 until 18 February 2022.
The actual procedure for the tendering of
new concessions of the second offshore
wind phase is yet to be adopted by Royal
Decree. 20
15 Art. 6/3 of the Electricity Act; "Belgium adopts legal framework on tenders for new offshore electricity production installations", published by Allen
& Overy on 1 May 2019 (New Belgian framework for offshore wind farm tenders - Allen & Overy (allenovery.com)); "The Way towards a competitive
bidding process for new offshore wind farms in Belgium", published by Dentons on 16 September 2019 (Dentons - The way towards a competitive
bidding process for new offshore wind farms in Belgium).
16 Derogations are, however, still possible. Reference is made in this respect to (i) art. 7, §2, fifth limb of the Electricity Act, (ii) art. 4 of the Federal Act of
8 May 2014 containing various provisions relating to energy and (iii) "Domain Concessions", published by the CREG (Domeinconcessies | CREG : Commissie voor de Regulering van de Elektriciteit en het Gas).
17 Art. 7, §2, fourth limb of the Electricity Act; T. Schoors and F. Goossens, "Steunmechanismen voor offshore hernieuwbare energie in Belgie" in
Jaarboek Energierecht 2019, K. Deketelaere and B. Delvaux (ed.), Intersentia, May 2018, 86; W. Vandorpe, D. Haverbeke en L. Pellens, "Belgische offshore
windproductie – Tendering the way forward, maar hoe exact? Enkele aandachtspunten" in Jaarboek energierecht 2020, K. Deketelaere en B. Delvaux (ed.),
Intersentia, October 2021, 94.
18 T. Schoors en F. Goossens, "Steunmechanismen voor offshore hernieuwbare energie in België" in Jaarboek energierecht 2019, K. Deketelaere en B.
Delvaux (ed.), Intersentia, May 2018, 72 and 73; W. Vandorpe, D. Haverbeke en L. Pellens, "Belgische offshore windproductie – Tendering the way forward,
maar hoe exact? Enkele aandachtspunten" in Jaarboek energierecht 2020, K. Deketelaere en B. Delvaux (ed.), Intersentia, October 2021, 94; T. Deruyter,
"Hernieuwbare energiebronnen" in Energierecht in België en Vlaanderen 2021, F. Vandendriessche (ed.), Intersentia, January 2021, 367-368.
19 "Public consultation on the offshore wind tender for the Princess Elisabeth Zone’, published by FPS Economy on 19 January 2022 (Openbare raadpleging over de offshore wind aanbesteding voor de Prinses Elisabeth Zone (fgov.be)).
20 "Belgian offshore wind energy – 5.4-5.8 GW", published by FPS Economy on 13 January 2022 (Belgian offshore wind energy -5.4-5.8 GW by 2030 |
FPS Economy (fgov.be)).
