I am a landowner

As a landowner, Elia will contact you directly if one of your plots of land is affected by an infrastructure project. You will then be contacted with a view to proposing the purchase of a piece of your land (in the case of overhead infrastructure) or the establishment of an easement agreement (in the case of underground infrastructure). These items are detailed in Articles 5 and 8 of the agricultural memorandum of understanding currently in force and available here.

Elia will contact you directly if this is the case. A company representative will then be your point of contact from start to finish. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our team by email at agriculteurs@elia.be or by phone on 0800 18 002.

Elia personally contacts any landowners concerned whenever this becomes necessary for the project. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our team by email at agriculteurs@elia.be or by phone on 0800 18 002.

Elia's electricity transmission infrastructure is deemed to be of public use and benefit. However, Elia has never resorted to expropriation and prefers to work in consultation with all parties affected by its infrastructure projects.

A memorandum of understanding has been signed by Elia and the various agricultural federations to ensure that all landowners are treated transparently and fairly. Specifically, it sets forth how the purchase of part of a plot of land would be carried out, in Article 5, by means of an option agreement, which is also part of this memorandum of understanding.  

In the agricultural memorandum of understanding, Elia proposes an option agreement or any other type of right in rem, if purchase is not foreseeable. You can find all of these provisions in Article 5 of the memorandum of understanding. 

Elia takes care to keep everyone involved in its projects as well informed as possible, from start to finish. In addition to the project page on the Elia website and the various brochures produced for the projects, there are also newsletters, so don't hesitate to sign up for them. In addition, as the landowner directly concerned, a representative will be your direct and personal point of contact throughout the project. Never hesitate to call them should you need to.

Elia always carries out preliminary studies for its infrastructure projects, looking at various aspects (technical, environmental, legal and administrative). Contacting landowners that may be affected by a project at an early stage is part of this preliminary study, and generally helps to fine-tune the project and minimise its impact.

As the owner of a plot of farmland, Elia will contact you personally if one of its projects affects you. If the project involves overhead infrastructure, Elia will offer to buy the necessary surface area. In the case of underground infrastructure, an easement is established. In all cases, these procedures are governed by the current memorandum of understanding, which ensures that the transactions are transparent and fair to all parties. If you farm your plot of land yourself, you will also have a dedicated point of contact at Elia, particularly while construction is underway and during preparatory work. Find all the information for farmers here.

The memorandum of understanding establishes a uniform and transparent legal framework for all parties relating to the presence of infrastructure required for the transmission of electricity in an agricultural area and its construction site. Specifically, it clarifies matters such as the organisation of the works, compensation for the presence of the infrastructure and compensation for any harm or damage caused during the works.

This memorandum is the result of consultation between Elia and the various Walloon and Flemish agricultural representatives. It concerns both landowners and farmers, and applies to all projects, whether they involve a high-voltage substation, an overhead line/underground cable or other infrastructure.

In 2012, Elia had already signed a memorandum of understanding with the Fédération Wallonne de l'Agriculture in Wallonia and with the Boerenbond and the Algemeen Boerensyndicaat in Flanders. The purpose of this was to provide the best possible solution to the realities on the ground and to everyone's expectations. This memorandum therefore served as a basis for work and discussion with all the representatives of the various farming organisations and Elia.

The protocol consists of two parts: one concerning the presence of the infrastructure on agricultural land and the other concerning the work associated with this infrastructure. In each case, some articles are specifically for farmers and others for owners of agricultural land, depending on the type of infrastructure (overhead or underground). There are also nine appendices to the memorandum of understanding, including models, standard contracts and methods for calculating compensation.

Article 5 of the memorandum of understanding sets out the compensation to which a landowner is entitled in the case of the installation of overhead infrastructure on their land. It details the purchase process via an option agreement contract, how the sale price is determined, when the amount is paid, etc. You can find the full memorandum here.

As a landowner, if an underground infrastructure has to be installed on one of your plots of land, compensation is payable. Article 8 of the memorandum of understanding explains the proposed right-of-way contract, the rights and responsibilities of each party, as well as the respective compensation, when it will be paid to the landowner and how the compensation is calculated, etc. The full memorandum can be found here. 

The memorandum of understanding on the organisation of work carried out by Elia on agricultural land and on compensation can be found here.