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The Belgian Minister of Energy, Tinne Van der Straeten, visited the large-scale model of the Princess Elisabeth Island yesterday at DHI’s wave pool lab in Hørsholm, Denmark.
Measuring 8 metres in length and 3 metres in width, the model is one of the largest ever tested in DHI’s wave basins, and it is being used to test the island’s resistance to currents and waves that could occur during “thousand-year storms.”
These storms have a 0.1% chance of occurring in any given year, but it’s important to make sure that the island can withstand them.
Such testing is necessary because the Princess Elisabeth Island is a world’s first.
This type of artificial energy island has never been built before, and it is important to make sure that it can withstand even the most extreme weather conditions.
The results of the tests in DHI’s wave pool lab will supplement previous testing that has already been done.
Starting next year, DEME and Jan De Nul Group will embark on the construction of the island, using the test results to refine the design. Elia operating the electricity transmission network in Belgium was granted the environmental permit for the island last month.