In the most recent innovation tender, the Federal Network Agency granted RWE a fixed market premium for the solar power from the edge of the Garzweiler opencast mine. Now the company will invite bids for the components of the two planned plants and apply to the town of Bedburg for building permits. Construction is scheduled to begin next summer. The two plants would generate and store electricity for the first time in early 2023. The PV & Storage Garzweiler project will generate 19.4 megawatts of solar power and have 6.5 megawatt hours of battery storage. The PV & Storage Jackerath plant will generate 12.1 megawatts of solar power and 4.1 megawatt hours from the battery storage.
See also: RWE and Facebook partner for a 150 MW solar project
The combination of solar panels and battery storage can buffer the solar power harvest and thus feed it more steadily into the supply grid. The special location of the two new plants is also innovative: they are located on operational sites in the opencast mine area: PV & Storage Garzweiler on a length of about two kilometres directly below the Königshovener Höhe wind farm operated by RWE and the town of Bedburg, one project on the western edge of the opencast mine. Both sites will later be overfilled with fertile soil in the course of recultivation so that new fields can be planted there. (nhp/mfo)
