The costs of the energy island in the North Sea threaten to rise to 7 billion euros. That is a multiple of the 2.2 billion euros that was initially estimated, De Tijd, De Standaard and L’Echo wrote on Thursday.
The dredging companies DEME and Jan De Nul are busy building the Princess Elisabeth Island, an artificial island off the Belgian coast that will be used by the power grid operator Elia as an energy hub at sea. It should serve as a connection point for three offshore wind farms to be built by 2030 and for new submarine cables to the United Kingdom or other North Sea countries.
The project threatens to be considerably more expensive than expected. According to N-VA MP Bert Wollants, the amount threatens to rise to 7 billion euros. Neither Minister of Energy Tinne Van der Straeten (Green) nor client Elia, operator of the high-voltage grid, wants to confirm the figure.
Higher energy bills for families
Elia does say that it is confronted with a significant increase in high-voltage costs. The energy regulator Creg also speaks of a “significant increase in the costs of the energy island and its connection to the Belgian grid”. The energy watchdog already warned Minister Van der Straeten in a letter in May about a cost explosion for the project.
The additional costs could increase the energy bills of households and companies in the coming years.