Evides and Eneco open floating solar farm at Berenplaat
On 8 April, Evides Water Company and Eneco will open a floating solar park on the reservoir at production site Berenplaat in Spijkenisse. This way, 21% of the drinking water treatment plant's energy needs will be met sustainably. It is the next innovative step towards making Evides' drinking water production process energy neutral. The floating farm will consist of 2 islands of about 1.5 hectares with a total of 8804 solar panels.
Contribution to becoming energy-neutral
On an annual basis, the park will generate about 4,876 MWh, depending of course on the number of hours of sunshine. This is comparable to the annual energy consumption of about 2,000 households. The electricity generated will be used by Evides itself for the Berenplaat site. It will cover about 21% of the total energy requirement of the production process.
In developing the solar farm, Evides set a condition that the power generation must not impact water quality in the reservoir on Berenplaat. The reservoir is filled with pre-treated river water and is important for drinking water production. Eneco and GroenLeven developed the 2 solar islands of about 1.5 ha with this in mind, thus ensuring good water quality in the reservoir. The two islands comprise a total of 8804 solar panels.
Climate target 2050
Annette Ottolini, general manager Evides Water Company: "Evides' ambition is to generate as much of its own energy as possible. By doing so, we will contribute to the Netherlands' climate target of being fully sustainable in terms of energy supply by 2050. One way Evides does this is by constructing solar farms on its own sites. We have opted for floating solar farms, along with ground-mounted and rooftop solar farms. This ensures that we make smart use of our reservoirs. They serve as storage of our raw material for drinking water supply, and are now also used for energy generation".
Environment fund
To boost sustainability in the area an environment fund has been set up. Contributions are made available from the fund to finance liveability and/or sustainability projects in the municipalities of Nissewaard and Hoeksche Waard. Erwin Leeuwis, Eneco Asset Development director: "With the environment fund we want to make it possible for the region to also benefit from local energy generation. It can encourage a range of other sustainability initiatives so that we invest in a green future together." More information about the environment fund will soon appear on the Evides and Eneco websites.
Erwin Leeuwis, director Asset Development Eneco en Annette Ottolini, CEO Evides Waterbedrijf opening the floating solar park.