Eneco starts construction of solar farm underneath Kabeljauwbeek wind farm
Eneco will build its largest solar farm to date in the municipality of Woensdrecht in Brabant. The farm, with some 88,000 solar panels, will generate around 44,500 MWh of green electricity per year. The park will be built underneath the five wind turbines of wind farm Kabeljauwbeek, which also belongs to Eneco.
The construction of a solar farm at its fully-owned wind farm Kabeljauwbeek, on the southwest side of the village of Ossendrecht and sandwiched between the A4 motorway, the Scheldt-Rhine Canal and the Belgian border, is unique for Eneco. With this combination, we make optimal use of the land and ensure that we can generate green power at more times. When it is windy, there is often less sun and vice versa. By combining the two techniques, we can make optimal use of Dutch weather conditions.
"With the construction of a solar farm underneath a wind farm, we can make better use of the available space and the existing connection to the power grid," says Erwin Leeuwis, Eneco’s director of asset development and -realisation. "So with this development, we are helping to avoid more grid congestion while being able to supply green power at more times. Moreover, this is a new step in the good cooperation we have built in recent years with the Woensdrecht municipality and other stakeholders in the area."
"The development of the solar farm is in line with Woensdrecht municipality's ambition to be energy-neutral. This solar farm will contribute to local power generation," said Woensdrecht municipality alderman Thierry de Heer. "From the end of this year, at the first power delivery, it will support the realisation of the energy-neutral goals and make a valuable contribution to the Regional Energy Strategy (RES) in our region."
Construction of the solar farm will begin in March. Construction traffic will use a temporary exit from the A4 motorway, which is being constructed for this purpose. The first solar panels will be installed in June. By the end of this year, the solar farm should then be able to supply the first power and shortly after that it will be fully operational. The enclosed location largely hides the farm from view in a natural manner. On the southern side of the planning area, the dike takes away the view of the solar farm. The eastern side of the area is enclosed by the A4 motorway, which runs alongside it.
To further hide the solar farm from view, we will plant vegetation on the northern and western sides. The plan is to grow native and area-specific plants here. This will have a positive effect on the habitat of insects. And this will also benefit, for example, farmland birds and small mustelids. In this way, we want to form a connection between natural areas on the west side and the south side of the farm.
The planned area of the solar farmKabeljauwbeek