- Start of construction for a 17 megawatt solar power plant in Böhlen in Saxony (Germany)
- Plant to be built on the site of an industrial tailings pond
- Complicated ground conditions with construction rubble and ash from a coal-fired power plant
Kolitzheim (Germany) – For its customer LEAG and their project developer EP New Energies, BELECTRIC installs a solar farm on the site of an industrial tailings pond. The photovoltaic system is designed specifically for the complex soil conditions of the area.
In Böhlen, district of Leipzig, the German solar company BELECTRIC has started constructing a 17 MWp solar power plant. The system consists of around 30,000 modules and will supply almost 6,000 households with green electricity. A special feature is the area on which the solar farm is being built. It is the site of a tailings pond for brown coal, which is located directly on the area of a former opencast mine. The settling, corrosive soil with construction rubble and ash from the coal-fired power plant in the subsoil requires intensive planning. “In order to design the solar farm specifically for the special requirements of the area, we carried out static tests early on and took soil samples", explains Martin Kunz, responsible Project Manager at BELECTRIC. “The construction of the electrical power line poses another challenge. It runs through the landfill area and is ultimately connected to the medium voltage in the cable cellar of the neighbouring coal-fired power plant. This was possible thanks to the many years of experience of our AC team.”
When constructing the open-space system, there is a special sensitivity towards animal protection. For example, certain areas are exempt from construction works to protect the native sand lizard. At the same time, flower strips and stone-wood piles are formed. They will provide shelter for the lizards or blindworms. The commissioning of the plant is planned for the first half of 2023.
“The construction of the Böhlen solar power plant marks another milestone in the transformation process of LEAG towards a renewable energy company, while EP New Energies is supporting with its project development. Despite the complex conditions related to the ground, but also the requirements of nature conservation, we can now start the construction phase at full speed without any major delays in project delivery”, says Florian Beyer, Project Manager Renewables at EP New Energies.
“We are glad that LEAG and EP New Energies have chosen us as their partner for the construction of this exciting solar farm”, adds Thomas Dorsch, Head of Sales Germany at BELECTRIC. “This is our first joint project - and it will certainly not be the last.”
BELECTRIC is one of Europe's leading EPC service providers in the development, construction and operation of solar power plants. The solar energy specialist looks back on more than 20 years of experience in power plant construction and has built over 4 gigawatts of capacity worldwide. BELECTRIC is a member of Elevion Group. Elevion Group BV is one of Europe’s leading energy service providers in the field of modern energy solutions that focus on sustainability and climate neutrality. Elevion Group belongs among Germany’s market leaders in this segment. The group currently is comprised of approximately 60 consolidated companies and employs more than 4,700 people in twelve countries – in addition to Germany, these include the Netherlands, Austria, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and China.
