The largest turbines installed so far in the Belgian North Sea are based on steel from Dillinger: At water depths of 22 to 36 meters, the 55,000 metric tons of thermomechanically rolled heavy plate in the form of monopile foundations weighing up to 1,250 metric tons ensure that the Rentel offshore wind farm is standing securely.
The wind farm is located about 40 km north of Ostend in the Belgian part of the North Sea and covers an area of 22.72 km². It consists of 42 wind turbines with an output of 7.35 MW each. With a total installed capacity of 309 MW, Rentel can supply around 285,000 Belgian households with green electricity – and thereby significantly help achieve Belgian and European climate targets.
Heavy plate from Dillinger (1,150 tons of thermomechanically rolled plate in thicknesses from 30 to 100 mm) is also contained in the monopile foundation of the farm’s electrical substation, which converts the voltage from 33 to 225 KV before the generated current is fed back to the on-shore power grid through an underwater cable.
About the Rentel offshore wind farm – size comparisons
The masts, weighing 470 metric tons each, rise 106 meters above the water’s surface. The nacelles, 20 meters long and 6 meters wide, are equivalent in size to two standard houses. Each blade weighs nearly 30 metric tons, is at least 75 meters long and up to 5 meters wide, which is one and a half times the length of an Olympic pool. With a diameter of 154 meters, the rotor covers a swept area of 18,600 square meters – equivalent to the wing span of two Airbus A380s. In sum, the total weight of a single wind turbine (tower + nacelle + rotor) amounts to approximately 950 metric tons. When the foundation is included, a turbine reaches a height of almost 200 meters, which is twice the height of the Atomium and more than one and a half times that of the Cathedral of Antwerp.
