One of the pearls of the Flemish offshore industry is the West Flemish e-BO Enterprises. The company of founder and owner Christophe Dhaene made its debut in the offshore industry in 2009 with the installation of IT networks for the first wind farms in Belgium. The West Flemish company now manages the IT of more than twenty wind farms worldwide. While Christophe Dhaene is prospecting for Lithuania, a new growth market for offshore wind, export manager Vincent Dehullu is exploring the American market in New Orleans.
“We take care of all digital aspects of critical infrastructure, such as a wind farm, from design to the control room during operational operation. We therefore digitize all know-how and thus anchor the knowledge, which is a must for a young industry that has a high turnover of personnel,” says Vincent Dehullu. “Customers know our added value. A project developer can only make money on a wind farm if it performs well operationally. Project developers ask us for a digital total solution, from design to operation. Not an easy product to manage, but that complexity protects us from competition.”
e-BO has 150 employees. Turnover doubled over the past three years to 30 million euros. The cruising speed is a growth of 20 percent. The increasing number of references opens new doors faster. “We could grow faster, but we don’t want that. We are a niche player that wants to remain flexible,” says Vincent Dehullu.
The Belgian model
e-BO Enterprises’ offering also includes the security of wind farms with sensors and cameras. The wind farms are of strategic importance for energy supplies, but are unmanned and the number of intrusions is increasing. “Offshore wind farms form the new borders of a country. We notice increasing cooperation between the competent authorities and all stakeholders, such as the navy, customs, fisheries, shipping or nature movements. We also see this trend abroad. They call our collaboration model the ‘Belgian model’ that serves as an example for the rest of the world,” says Vincent Dehullu.
The order book in the US is still empty. Annual turnover is mainly earned in Europe and Asia. Vincent Dehullu: “We follow our customers, a number of large project developers, all over the world. We prefer to work on the basis of long-term contracts. Contracts in the US will follow. Our plans are ready here. The US offshore market is still a nascent market. Above all, they must be willing to accept that they need external knowledge.”
One of the biggest headaches for the company is finding skilled workers. Vincent Dehullu: “We are continuously looking for IT professionals with a sense of adventure. You will not find specific knowledge for offshore on the market. We teach this knowledge to new employees ourselves. We can offer them an exciting job and job security. We have work for decades.”
