A joint venture involving Belgian companies is to install what is being described as the world’s most powerful rooftop solar panel installation in Venlo in the Netherlands.
Work has already started on the installation of what will be 48,040 solar panels, on the roof of the Venlo E-Commerce Logistic Campus in the Dutch province of Limburg.
The panels cover an area of 12.6 hectares, the equivalent of 20 football pitches, and the installation will be capable of generating enough electricity to power 4,500 homes for a year while producing 12,000 tonnes less carbon dioxide. The power generated will be used mainly for the campus, as well as some separate buildings.
The project is being run by AG Heylen Energy, a joint venture between AG Real Estate, based in Brussels, and Heylen from Herentals in Antwerp province, a specialist in logistic real estate.
The financing comes from Belfius, to the tune of €15.3 million. The joint venture will be joined by IZEN from Lille in Antwerp province, which delivers turnkey solar power systems, and by engineering firm Encon from Bilzen in Flemish Limburg.
“A large-scale campus, the collaboration with the Province of Limburg, the contractor IZEN, the engineering company ENCON and the investment policy in the Netherlands, make it a favourable climate to fully deploy in energy transition,” said Philippe Deschilder, CEO of Heylen Warehouses.
The installation is due to come on stream in June this year.
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
