BayWa subsidiary ECOwind along with Austrian energy supplier EVN has energized a 24.5 MW floating solar power plant on water surface created by former sand and gravel pit in Austria, calling it the largest of its kind in the country as well as Central Europe.
Located in Austria's Grafenwörth, the project occupies close to 14 hectares space on the water surface of the 2 lakes. It is equipped with 45,304 solar modules that BayWa says were installed within 10 weeks. The floating solar plant is expected to generate 26,700 MWh of green electricity annually.
"In Grafenwörth, the challenge was to drive approval procedures and regulations for this new PV application in Austria and to ensure a safe construction – which we managed even with a level difference of 7m between the mounting surface and the water," said ECOwind Managing Director Johann Janker.
The company said over the next several years it plans to research on the fish population and examine local dragonfly fauna in these lakes to ensure the project's integration into the surrounding ecosystem.
For the German renewable energy company, this project takes its total installed floating PV capacity to over 230 MW with 15 projects, including 3 facilities in the Netherlands namely 41.1 MW Sellingen, 29.8 MW Uivermeertjes and 27.4 MW Bomhofsplas projects (see 70 MW Floating Solar Capacity Energized in Netherlands).