Decarbonisation / Belgium: "Electricity demand could double by 2050" (A. Van Steenbergen)

What energy supply scenarios would enable Belgium to achieve climate neutrality in 2050? To inform this trajectory, three researchers from the Federal Planning Bureau published a study on 22/09/2025, highlighting a massive increase in electricity demand, from 88 TWh in 2020 to 202 TWh in 2050.

Based on this assumption, the three co-authors have designed three energy mix scenarios, with their relative costs and associated risks, particularly in terms of energy sovereignty. The OPT scenario requires the least financial capacity and freely optimises the technological mix according to costs. The RES and REG scenarios are based on the assumption that nuclear power will be phased out by 2035 in the case of the RES scenario, which envisages maximum development of offshore wind power and interconnections with wind farms in the North Sea. The REG scenario, on the other hand, is based on extensive development of onshore wind power and photovoltaics.

"If our assumptions are correct, we're talking about a world where electricity demand is at least double what it is today; we would then be…