German solar developer Conergy has broken ground on the installation of an 8.2MW photovoltaic (PV) facility in Grimmen, north-east Germany.
Conergy is acting as general contractor as well as component supplier on behalf of project developer EBB Renewable Energy. The park is in the local town's industrial zone and the first phase of development is expected to become operational by the end of the year. It will provide electricity to approximately 60 per cent of Grimmen's inhabitants.
Stefan Balbierz, head of Conergy in Germany, said, 'The North is increasingly also warming to solar energy in addition to the traditional wind energy. After all, it has the advantage of being decentralised and therefore producing the energy where it is actually consumed. Since 2006, the volume of solar energy generated in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern each year has risen more than tenfold. In 2010, the sun thus supplied 43,000 households with clean energy. This means that the 'Energy Switch' decided by the politicians has already arrived here.'
Earlier this month, the company's Australian division completed a rooftop installation of solar panels at an emergency services contact centre in Queensland and in September announced the decision to cease production of PV cells and wafers as it said it can no longer cover the manufacturing cost.