Germany multinational utility RWE has started building its first ground-mounted solar energy project in the Netherlands.
The 14MW plant is expected to be commissioned in 2021.
The solar farm, Kerkrade, is located in the Province of Limburg and will further strengthen RWE’s renewables business in the Netherlands.
RWE is partnering with Dutch company Volta Solar for the construction of the project.
The plant will be built on a 12-hectare piece of land and will comprise 36,000 solar panels.
Katja Wünschel, COO Wind Onshore & Solar PV Europe & APAC of RWE Renewables, said: “The Netherlands is one of Europe’s core markets for solar energy. That’s why I am delighted that now all traffic lights are green to start the construction of Kerkrade – our first ground-mounted solar farm in the country. This solar farm will be able to supply the equivalent of almost 4,000 Dutch homes with green electricity and will make a substantial contribution to reach the local climate targets.
“We want to build up a substantial solar portfolio in the Netherlands and have already secured further growth opportunities by partnering with local developers, like Volta Solar. In addition we benefit from the market expertise of our well-established onshore wind business and intend to achieve synergies by developing solar parks closely to our onshore assets.”
RWE operates seven onshore wind farms with a total capacity of around 300MW in the Netherlands.
In addition, the company is currently constructing four new onshore wind farms with more than 115MW total capacity in the country.
