Project developer Goldbeck Solar has been awarded the contract to build the Kabeljauwbeek ground-mounted solar plant in the municipality of Woensdrecht in the south-west of the Netherlands in the province of North Brabant. The craftsmen will install around 88,000 solar modules there. Together, these will achieve an output of 51 megawatts.
Combined with wind power
The plant will be embedded in an existing wind farm. It is expected to generate around 44,500 MWh of solar power each year. Using a decentralised inverter system, the generator also feeds into the existing grid connection of the wind turbines. This has the advantage that grid bottlenecks can be avoided, as the two technologies complement each other well in terms of the generation curve.
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However, existing supply lines within the construction site posed a challenge when planning the solar park, explain the project planners. They therefore carried out a detailed 3D visualisation of the entire construction site. A second challenge was that any assembly work on the wind turbines had to remain feasible. This requires appropriate logistics and road areas. It is therefore a prerequisite that parts of the new solar park must be able to be dismantled. With the help of precise 3D planning, it was possible to ensure that all factors were taken into account and that construction could proceed smoothly.
Compensation area for biodiversity
Of course, biodiversity is not neglected either. Native plants will be planted on the north and west sides of the park to attract insects and thus benefit birds and small mammals. "Goldbeck Solar has already built over 40 solar power plants in the Netherlands and can therefore not only make an important contribution to the energy transition, but is also continuously committed to promoting renewable energies and the sustainable development of energy infrastructures in Europe," says Thorsten Lerch, Head of Profit Centre Netherlands at Goldbeck Solar. "We are therefore particularly proud to be realising our sixth solar park with Eneco Solar and to be expanding our portfolio in the Netherlands together with a strong partner."
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Construction of the solar park began in March 2024. It is scheduled for completion by the end of 2024. The plant will be located in Nieuwe Dijk, Ossendrecht, a district of Woensdrecht and thus directly on the border between the Netherlands and Belgium. The project developers emphasise that this once again underlines the international nature of renewable energies. (su/mfo)
