A 150-metre high wind turbine could be constructed right next to the beltway or "Ring" around Brussels and the canal, and it would be built by Coca-Cola and the energy company Luminus.
If the application is approved, the turbine will be located at a site on the Rue de Zuen, behind the IKEA store and the Coca-Cola offices. Its 150 metre height includes the blades, and is similar to the height of the turbines located further along the canal in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, reports Bruzz.
The plans for the wind turbine have been underway for some time, but now that the public inquiry phase has begun, construction is getting closer.
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The planned capacity is 2.4 megawatts (MW), which is modest for a new turbine. Land ones that generate more than 3 MW are already in use, and ones at sea can generate over 8 MW.
Around 70% of the electricity it would produce would be used by Coca-Cola, with 30% returned to the power grid.
The turbine will mainly be visible from points in Anderlecht or from certain heights, Luminus says, with construction barely visible or not visible at all from the city center of Brussels.
Bruzz reports that the wind turbine won’t be able to be glimpsed from the pedestrian zone, but will be visible from the Place Poelaert. People driving on the smaller beltway, or the “Little Ring,” will be able to catch glimpses of the blades.
The turbine will be shut down throughout the year as needed to protect animals, in particular in summer and autumn so that bats don't get caught in its blades. Luminus says the sound generated from the turbine will be indistinguishable from ambient noise.
The public can view the plans and comment on them until 16 March, at which point the Anderlecht consultation committee will assess the permit application.
Helen Lyons
The Brussels Times
