Enhancements Made to Belgium’s Blue Accelerator Test Site for Offshore Testing

Belgium’s Blue Accelerator test site has undergone an upgrade as part of the Test@Sea project, enhancing offshore testing infrastructure with new frames and sensors for materials research.

The expansion of the Blue Accelerator test site was completed in three phases, demonstrating a commitment to advancing offshore testing capabilities. In fall 2024, an underwater inspection was conducted by CSpect using a drone equipped with cameras, sonar, and sensors to provide a detailed visual assessment inside the monopile.

Following the inspection, a climbing team from All Works at Height removed the J-Tubes from the monopile, creating space for the installation of new infrastructure. In January 2025, Blue Accelerator announced the successful installation of new frames, sensors, and test plates both inside and outside the monopile, further enhancing the testing capabilities of the site.

The upgrades are part of the Test@Sea project, a collaborative effort involving VLIZ-Flanders Marine Institute, Sirris, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Ghent University, and De Blauwe Cluster (Blue Cluster). The project aims to advance pre-standardization processes, improve offshore testing methods, and expand the site with floating and submersible structures to meet the evolving needs of the Blue Economy sector.

“Thanks to the expansion of testing capacity, we are therefore meeting market demands within the Blue Economy sector,” said Blue Accelerator in a recent social media post.

Located 500 meters from the eastern breakwater of Ostend, Belgium, Blue Accelerator is a maritime innovation and development platform operated by POM West Flanders. The site serves as a testing hub for companies, research centers, and knowledge institutions seeking to validate new technologies for the blue economy, supporting offshore innovation through tests conducted below, above, and at sea level.

In a notable demonstration of the site’s capabilities, Danish clean energy start-up Exowave deployed a scale model of its wave energy technology at Blue Accelerator in October 2022, testing its performance in real offshore conditions.