Eeklo (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Starting September 11, 2025, businesses can apply for permits at the 25-hectare EHUBt Balgerhoeke in Eeklo, developed by East Flanders, Eeklo, Veneco, featuring sustainable energy, roads, and cycling paths.
As VRT News reported, starting tomorrow, Sep 11, 2025, businesses in Eeklo, in the province of East Flanders, Belgium, can apply for permits to set up at the new 25-hectare EHUBt Balgerhoeke business park.
The project is a collaboration between the Province of East Flanders, the City of Eeklo, the intermunicipal company Veneco, and the Roads and Traffic Agency. Together, they created the Spatial Implementation Plan (PRUP) for the site. The plan is designed to attract larger companies to the Meetjesland region.
“The new business park addresses the need for additional business space in the region,”
says Provincial Executive Dagmar Beernaert (Vooruit).
“At the same time, we are investing in sustainable energy and integrating it seamlessly into the surrounding area.”
How will Eeklo’s 25-hectare EHUBt Balgerhoeke boost business and sustainability?
EHUBt Balgerhoeke will also include an energy hub to support sustainable power. The hub will generate, store, and exchange solar, wind, and thermal energy. This energy will supply the park itself and can also be fed into the surrounding neighbourhood and the wider electricity grid. The park combines business infrastructure with green technology.
To improve access to the new EHUBt Balgerhoeke industrial estate and reduce traffic in the village centre of Balgerhoeke, a new road to the E34 motorway is under construction. The road is meant to take through traffic away from residential streets, which the authorities say will reduce congestion in the village centre.
Planners are also looking at some cycling infrastructure and environmental initiatives. There will be dedicated cycling paths on the new road, thus improving safety for cyclists going to and from the business park. There will be more rainwater collection systems installed to manage runoff from the new paved areas.
The Spatial Implementation Proposal (PRUP) was approved in 2023, and it presented site-specific rules for drawing in large businesses, creating modern infrastructure and including renewable energy solutions. The construction of infrastructure began in early 2024, including provisions for safe cycling routes and rainwater management to promote environmental sustainability.
