BayWa has completed the construction of a 10MWp solar park 50km north of Bayreuth, Germany.
The project was commissioned by a long-standing customer that manages the local property, according to the developer.
The solar park is connected to the grid of a wind farm constructed in 2013 with an output of 24MW, which BayWa helped implement.
The main challenge for this project was developing a design that guaranteed a high capacity connection while simultaneously generating power from both wind and solar energy, it said.
BayWa project manager Jan-Gerd Bayerköhler said: “Solar-wind hybrid projects continue to be in the minority in Germany and thus we have limited experience with such systems.
“That applies to developers as much as grid operators. Both sides must work closely together to ensure the success of such projects.”
Although increased co-operation and manpower may be necessary for these kinds of hybrid systems, BayWa said they actually prove to be very cost effective as they only require one connection to the grid.
Bayerköhler said: “We could only afford the solar park as we were able to use the existing connection to the wind farm.”
In addition to being cost effective, hybrid systems will also become more popular in the future due to the positive impacts on the electricity grid, BayWa added.
BayWa hybrid and storage division manager Philipp Kunze said: “The share of energy from renewable sources is continuing to grow in Germany, yet wind and solar power generation is subject to natural fluctuations over time, which can lead to grid capacity bottlenecks.
“A detailed on-site analysis of the generation power of solar and wind farms allows for decisions to be made regarding the size of the farm and the connection point, fully leveraging the electricity grid. We must aim for a greater transition to hybrid systems going forward.”
The positive experiences taken from this project have led the customer and BayWa to plan some additional extensions to the farm by up to 22 MWp.
The developer renerco plan consult provided insight for the design and planning of the PV system as well as the development of the connection.