Germany's LEAG plans 300 MW solar project in Brandenburg

German energy company Lausitz Energie Bergbau AG (LEAG) is planning to set up a 300-MW solar park on the recultivation area of an opencast mine in the state of Brandenburg.

The municipal council of Spremberg last week granted approval for the Huehnerwasser und Wolkenberg project that will be built on an area of 350 hectares (864.9 acres) of the Welzow-Sued opencast mine located between Spremberg and Papproth, LEAG said on Friday.

The decision marks the start of the land use planning which includes detailed project planning and environmental assessment.

LEAG is partnering with project developer EP New Energies GmbH (EPNE) on the implementation of the project.

Huehnerwasser und Wolkenberg is part of LEAG's strategy to switch entirely to renewable energy, replacing all of its 7 GW of existing conventional power generation capacity.

The energy company and EPNE have a 2-GW pipeline of wind and solar projects in the planning and approval stages. The green energy parks will be built in the Lusatian area to support the development of the region. Apart from the Welzow-Sued opencast mine, LEAG operates three more lignite mines in Lusatia.

In March, LEAG and EPNE received municipal approval for another large-scale solar park Brandenburg. The 200-MW facility will be located in the Dissen-Striesow municipality with commissioning planned for 2025.

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