With its 87.1 MWp on an area of around 95 hectares, the Zeithain solar park is one of the largest in the Saxon district of Meißen. Today, the Hamburg-based ENERPARC AG, developer and operator, officially inaugurated the PV plant, which was built in nine construction phases from 2016 to 2024. Wolfram Günther, Saxony's Minister of State for Energy, Climate Protection, Environment and Agriculture, Zeithain's mayor Dr. Mirko Pollmer and other municipal representatives were among those in attendance.
The solar park is one of the largest in the district of Meißen. In particular, the plant is also special because it is built on an area used by the military for around 150 years - the so-called Old Camp. ENERPARC has therefore carried out numerous exploratory measures and munitions clearance operations here. Today, the solar power plant generates enough solar power to cover the demand of around 25,000 households a year. In addition, the extensive remediation of contaminated sites protects the drinking water conservation area on which the park is located.
To feed the solar power into the grid, ENERPARC has laid a 3.6 km cable route to Zeithain Neudorf and built its own substation there. The electricity is then converted and fed into the public grid. ENERPARC subsidiary Sunnic Lighthouse will take over the trading of the solar power.
Saxony's Energy Minister Wolfram Günther: “The new PV plant in Zeithain is an important component of our energy transition. It supplies green electricity for a region with energy-intensive industrial companies, which have a great interest in renewable energies and their expansion. At the same time, an area that was formerly used for military purposes and sealed is being put to good use here and is also being ecologically upgraded in a targeted manner. In short, this PV system is an exemplary project.”
ENERPARC has implemented numerous compensatory measures to protect species in and around the solar park, which have already led to a demonstrable increase in biodiversity in the area.
Daniel Dechmann-Annus, project manager at ENERPARC: “Together with Holger Seidemann (Büro für Umwelt und Planung Leipzig) and klm-architekten Leipzig, we have developed and implemented a comprehensive concept to promote biodiversity. 200 bird boxes, around 50 bat replacement boxes, sand lizard habitats, ponds, installed and relocated beetle trees and much more have led to the establishment of numerous endangered animal and plant species in the area. This is confirmed by our regular monitoring on site.”
Hydrogen pilot project could follow
Many companies, e.g. from the steel and chemical industries, are located in the so called Meißen Industriebogen. This makes it one of the regions in Germany that could make good use of green hydrogen. One of the measures to maintain and further boost the economy in the district is therefore the connection to the planned “European Hydrogen Backbone” hydrogen network. Supply could be a reality by 2032. Before then, ENERPARC wants to implement its own hydrogen pilot project in the district.
ENERPARC CEO Stefan Müller: “ENERPARC is primarily focused on the planning, construction and operation of ground-mounted solar plants and the subsequent trading of solar power. However, our innovation team deals with many topics that are closely linked to photovoltaics or will be in the future. This also includes green hydrogen. Its production makes sense in the energy-intensive Meißen Industriebogen, because there is a great demand for it. For us, these are ideal conditions for a hydrogen pilot project that we want to implement here.”
ENERPARC plans to develop another ground-mounted solar plant with a maximum output of 17 MWp in the near future. It will supply the pilot electrolyzer directly with solar power as the primary energy for producing hydrogen. In the medium and longer term, further larger solar parks are to be realized in the municipality of Zeithain and the surrounding area.
About ENERPARC:
The international specialist for solar power plants in the megawatt segment is active as a developer, constructor, operator and investor of large-scale solar power plants. Founded in Hamburg in 2008 and not listed on the stock exchange, the company currently employs over 500 people and is active in Spain, France, Portugal, India and Australia in addition to its core market of Germany. In recent years, ENERPARC has successfully connected more than 650 solar plants with an output of over 4,500 MW to the grid worldwide - around 3,500 MW of which are its own solar power plants - and has become one of the largest independent power producers for solar energy in Europe. ENERPARC's goal is to develop a total of 10 GW of PV systems for its own portfolio and a further 10 GW for third-party solar portfolios worldwide by 2030.