RWE puts Agri-PV test field into operation

22.01.2024


Source: Energy & Management Powernews

RWE has put an agrivoltaic demonstration plant into operation. The aim is to gain insights into different types of cultivation.

After only around five months of construction, RWE's agrivoltaic plant in the Rhenish lignite mining region has fed green electricity into the grid for the first time. The demonstration plant was built on a recultivation area of around 7 hectares on the edge of the Garzweiler open-cast mine near Bedburg (North Rhine-Westphalia). According to a statement from the Essen-based energy company, the aim is to carry out application research and show how solar power generation and agriculture can go hand in hand.

The first plants are due to be planted in the spring. The research activities, which will run for at least five years, will then begin. The Institute of Plant Sciences at the Jülich Research Center and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE are providing scientific support for the project. It is funded by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia through the "progres.nrw" program for climate protection and energy transition.

Three different technical solutions

The pilot plant has a capacity of 3.2 MW and consists of three different Agri-PV concepts that enable both arable and horticultural use of the land. In the first variant, the solar modules are fixed and vertical. In the second, they are mounted on a movable axis in order to follow the path of the sun from east to west.

Arable beans, alfalfa and forage grass are to be grown on these two areas in the first year of the trial. In subsequent years, the plan is to grow cereals, sugar beet, potatoes and other vegetables. There is sufficient space between the rows of modules for harvesting machinery.

In the third variant, the PV modules are mounted on a pergola-like substructure. Raspberries, for example, can grow under the modules.

Author: Günter Drewnitzky