Solar developer Move On Energy has commenced commercial operation of Europe’s largest solar PV park in Germany.
Located in the district of Leipzig, eastern Germany, the Witznitz Energy Park has a capacity of 605MW, with a further 45MW to be installed and connected by Summer.
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Developed by Move On Energy, the project was built in partnership with German real estate company Hansainvest Real Assets, which is the investor of the project.
Over 1.1 million solar panels were installed in the solar park which is located on the site of a former opencast coal mine. A 15-year power purchase agreement was secured last year with oil giant Shell Energy Europe.
Although Germany is the leading European country in terms of installed capacity, adding 14GW of solar PV in 2023, the previous holder of the largest operational solar PV plant in Europe was located in Spain and built by utility Iberdrola. With a capacity of 590MW, the Francisco Pizarro PV project is located in the solar hotspot of Extremadura, southwestern Spain, and has been operational since August 2022.
Iberdrola is no stranger to building large-scale solar PV projects in Europe and has secured environmental approval in January 2023 to build a 1.2GW PV plant in Portugal. The project is expected to be commissioned in 2025 and would nearly double the capacity of the Witznitz Energy Park.
| PV Tech publisher Solar Media will be organising the second edition of Large Scale Solar Southern Europe in Athens, Greece during 2-3 July 2024. The event will focus on an ever-growing market such as Southern Europe with a packed programme of panels, presentations and fireside chats from industry leaders responsible for the build-out of solar PV projects in Greece, Turkey and Croatia. For more information, including how to attend, please go to the official website. |