Utrecht, Wednesday 9 May 2007 - On 26 April, Rijkswaterstaat Noordzee announced that the permit application, including the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment ) submitted by Evelop International and Ballast Nedam Concessies (Concessions) for the offshore wind farm Scheveningen Buiten has been approved. No further applications for this location will be considered. This gives the partnership Evelop and Ballast Nedam Concessies the exclusive right to develop Scheveningen Buiten. The wind farm, which will be built outside the 12-mile zone off Scheveningen (approximately 30 km from the coast), is expected to be finished by 2011. It will generate over 300 MW (sufficient to supply some 350,000 households with electricity).

Together, Evelop and Ballast Nedam have all the know-how and skills needed to develop offshore wind energy in the Netherlands and abroad. Both are confident that they will be able to develop more offshore wind projects in the Netherlands in consultation with the Dutch government. This project will make a significant contribution to achieving the targets the government has set for renewable energy.

Econcern subsidiary Evelop now has approximately 2200 MW of capacity in its offshore wind pipeline. In the North Sea the 120 MW Q7 park is expected to be operational in March 2008. Scira, in the Wash near Sheringham, within the British 12-mile zone, will generate 315 MW. Full approvals and financial close are planned in 2007. We also expect to be awarded the concession for Belwind on the BlighBank (46 km off the Belgian coast) in the second quarter of 2007. Belwind will generate 330 MW.

Ballast Nedam Concessies is involved in developing new offshore wind farms in several European countries. Acquiring the exclusive rights for Scheveningen Buiten is therefore an important milestone in its ambition to become one of the leading forces in designing offshore wind farms. In 2006, the parent company Ballast Nedam was responsible for building the first Dutch offshore wind farm in the North Sea at Egmond aan Zee.

Note for editors:

Evelop International BV (www.evelop.com)
Evelop is a European project developer working in the field of renewable energy. Evelop’s knowledge of the energy market combined with its experience of the available technologies enables the company to develop promising initiatives for sustainable, profitable projects. Evelop is part of the Econcern group, one of Europe's 500 fastest growing companies. The company’s mission is to ensure "a sustainable energy supply for everyone."

Ballast Nedam Concessies B.V.
Ballast Nedam Concessies designs, manages and invests capital in projects based on long-term permits. This specialised business unit of Ballast Nedam takes care of the infrastructure and construction.Many of its projects are carried out as Public Private Partnerships (PPP). Ballast Nedam Concessies is also active in the renewable energy market – including the offshore wind sector – and in the private franchise market.