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Magritte Museum to be powered by solar panels
Brussels’ Magritte Museum, one of the capital’s flagship museums on the Mont des Arts, is being equipped with almost 170 photovoltaic panels on its roof.
The Régie des Bâtiments (Federal Buildings Agency) project that started in mid-April is expected to finish in the coming days. The installation will save more than 10 tonnes of CO² per year.
The energy produced by the solar panels will be used directly by the various institutions of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, the Régie des Bâtiments said.
The expected annual energy production is estimated at 63.9 MWh, while the cost of the work is estimated at €91,000. In 2023, when the museum was undergoing a full renovation, the installation of solar panels was announced for the “near future”.
The former neoclassical mansion that houses the Magritte Museum was built in 1779. The new panels will be added to the monumental Magritte-style apple already installed on the roof of the building.
Since it opened in 2009, the Magritte Museum has attracted more than four million visitors. More than 60% come from abroad, keen to see the work of one of the most famous Belgians. Since 2009, the Magritte Museum has been part of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts and housed in the same building.
The capital is also home to Magritte’s house in Jette, the René Magritte museum. This provides an alternative, intimate and charming look at his life, with the next door building now housing the Museum of Abstract Art.