Engie has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) to supply chemicals company Ineos with electricity generated by a portion of the Norther offshore wind farm off Belgium.
The 10-year PPA is for 84MW of capacity and starts on 1 January 2021.
The contract will initially be used for the existing production facilities of Ineos and later for Project One, comprising facilities for making ethylene and propylene in the port area of Antwerp.
Ineos Project One chief executive John McNally said: “This agreement is an important step for Ineos to reduce emissions from our energy consumption in Belgium.
“Project One will consist of the most energy-efficient installations of its kind in Europe using the latest technologies.
“Our propane dehydrogenation unit has been designed with a maximum level of electrification, making it possible to virtually eliminate indirect emissions by using only green power. In the coming months, we will study options to reduce the purchase of renewable energy to expand further.”
Ineos olefins and polymers Europe chairman Gerd Franken added: “This important commitment will reduce our carbon footprint in Belgium by more than 1 million tonnes of CO2, the equivalent of removing 100,000 passenger cars from traffic every year, starting early next year over a period of 10 years.
“It is part of a range of initiatives we have developed to reduce our impact on the environment while continuing to provide the basic raw materials for the growing demand for products in the medical, food, transportation and construction industries. “
Norther began commercial operation earlier this year and comprises 44 8.4MW MHI Vestas V164 turbines.