Ostend port gets 8.7m euro investment in offshore test platform and sea drones
POM West Flanders is investing around 8.7 million euros in new testing infrastructure at the port of Ostend, with support from the federal government. The investment includes an offshore test platform and a number of seagoing drones.
The plans were presented on Wednesday in the presence of Belgian North Sea minister Annelies Verlinden. The new infrastructure is intended to help companies and research institutions move innovative technologies from the research stage to practical application at sea more quickly. It forms part of a wider investment programme for innovation in the North Sea that is currently being finalised.
The offshore test platform is one of the key investments. The floating structure will be used as a test site within an existing wind farm in the Belgian part of the North Sea. Thanks to the available power supply and data connections, it creates a unique environment in which innovative applications can be tested and demonstrated at sea.
"Companies and research institutions will, among other things, carry out material tests, corrosion tests and tests on offshore energy systems under real-world conditions at sea," explains Jean de Bethune, chairman of POM West Flanders.
"The platform also offers opportunities for aerial, marine and underwater drones, allowing new technologies to be validated and evaluated on a larger scale, in conditions that closely resemble their eventual deployment at sea."
In addition to the test platform, a measurement and monitoring buoy has also been purchased. The buoy collects data on weather and sea conditions - even where no electricity or data connection is available. "Thanks to its own power supply and communication equipment, it offers an autonomous testing and monitoring environment for offshore applications," de Bethune adds.
The investment programme also includes a series of targeted investments in existing innovation infrastructure along the Belgian coast.
#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO KURT DESPLENTER
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