The Energy Minister of the Belgian region of Flanders, Bart Tommelein, has announced that around €6 million in funds will be devoted to support pilot floating PV projects.
In a statement published on the ministry's website, Tommelein said the first pilot projects will be developed on lakes or ponds that are currently not being utilized for other purposes, such as artificial lakes created by sand extraction. “We are going to place solar modules where there is just water, not on natural reserves or water surfaces that offer recreational opportunities,” Tommelein said.
He added that floating PV installations can provide more power yield than rooftop solar power generators, as they can rotate and utilize the additional light reflected by the water.
More information on the projects was not provided.
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In mid-February, the Belgian secretary of state for Social fraud, Privacy and the North Sea, Philippe De Baker also announced a government plan to invest in off-shore floating PV.
According to this plan, large-scale off-shore solar and wind power facilities may be built as a barrier for protecting the coast against storms. At the time, De Baker said the government was planning to cooperate with private players to develop the solar islands in the next legislature.
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