A Belgium port has announced its largest investment in a decade, focusing on the offshore wind sector in a bid to boost its commitment to renewables.
In 2010, the Port of Oostende attracted external capital to develop the port into the logistics offshore wind hub of the southern part of the North Sea. For this purpose, Renewable Energy Base Ostend (REBO NV) was founded together with PMV, DEME and Artes-Group NV. After a risky start-up phase, Port of Oostende has now acquired the PMV, DEME and Artes-Group NV shares in REBO NV and become sole shareholder.
Dirk Declerck, chief executive of Port Oostende said, "In order to strengthen the continuity of the port, it is important to increase the occupancy of the REBO terminal. The terminal has many assets, such as its exclusive location, the presence of heavy load quays and a RoRo pontoon with a carrying capacity of 650 tonnes.
"Exploiting these assets to the fullest in combination with a broadening of the activity radius will contribute to the Blue Economy developments being able to attach themselves further to the social and economic fabric of the Ostend region."
The REBO terminal at the port is known as the heavy load quay, specialising in storage, pre-assembly and shipping of wind turbine components. Over a period of nine years, the terminal has become sufficiently mature and now has a stable balance sheet meaning the resources and expertise of the initial investors are no longer needed.
