MHI Vestas Offshore Wind has been selected as preferred supplier to supply turbines for the development of the 370MW Norther offshore wind project in Belgium.
Under the contract, if signed, MHI will supply 46 V164-8.0 MW turbines for the Norther wind farm, which will be equally owned by Eneco and Elicio. MHI Vestas Offshore Wind is a 50-50 joint venture between Vestas Wind Systems and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
Featuring 20m long, 8m wide nacelles, the V164-8.0MW turbines has a hub height of 105m and is designed to reduce operational and maintenance costs.
Planned to be built the Belgian North Sea, approximately 22 km off the coast of Zeebrugge, the Norther project is expected to be the largest of its kind in the country upon commissioning scheduled in 2019.
MHI Vestas Offshore Wind CEO Jens Tommerup said: "We are extremely pleased that following a competitive tender process Eneco and Elicio have chosen MHI Vestas Offshore Wind as the preferred supplier for the Norther project, which will be the largest offshore wind power plant in Belgium."
"MHI Vestas has a strong partnership with Eneco, who we have worked with to deliver the 129MW Eneco Luchterduinen and 120MW Princess Amalia projects in the Netherlands, while we look forward to building our relationship with Elicio going forwards."
The wind project is expected to generate clean electricity required to power 370,000 Belgian households.
It will also contribute to the country’s goal to generate 13% of total power from renewable sources by 2020.
Elicio and Eneco plan to reach financial close for the project in 2016.
Image: A MHI Vestas-built turbine. Photo: courtesy of MHI Vestas Offshore Wind A/S.