PRESS RELEASE
Dillingen, 07.02.2024
Construction of the world’s largest vertical large-scale PV system on airport grounds began today at Frankfurt Airport. On a total area of 30.8 ha, a 17.4 MWp plant with the Next2Sun system will be erected on green areas along the western runway. The Next2Sun Group, a pioneer in vertical photovoltaics, is not only the system supplier, but also responsible for the implementation of the project as the plant builder.
If you look down at the vertical photovoltaic systems, they appear like thin lines in the landscape, which directly illustrates one of the major advantages of vertically installed photovoltaic modules: hardly any surface is sealed. With the Next2Sun vertical photovoltaic system, less than 1% of the area is built over, and thus the ecologically valuable meadow areas are almost completely preserved. Marcus Keimling, Head of Network Services at Fraport AG, emphasizes: “Our green areas are almost unique in terms of their biodiversity – this characteristic is to be preserved without restriction despite installation.” Experience from previous large-scale projects has shown that, in contrast to conventional ground-mounted systems, the minimal land use can prevent a negative impact on precipitation distribution and vegetation.
At Frankfurt Airport, the Next2Sun vertical system was first tested with an 8.4 kWp demonstration plant before the decision was made to build a large-scale plant along the western runway. This is exactly where the starting signal for construction has now been given. The module rows of the Next2Sun system will be erected over a length of 2,800 meters parallel to the runway. At the end, the plant will have a total output of 17.4 MWp and make a decisive contribution to the CO2-free operation of Frankfurt Airport.
The Next2Sun Group can, as the pioneer of vertical photovoltaics, demonstrate comprehensive experience in project development, plant construction and plant operation. At the same time, the Next2Sun system has been continuously developed over many years and defines the state of the art with outstanding performance. Marcus Keimling is certain that “with Next2Sun, we have found a partner who, thanks to its expertise and many years of experience in the construction of large-scale systems, can lead this project to success together with Fraport.”
Heiko Hildebrandt, CEO of Next2Sun AG, hopes for many follow-up projects: “Solar power in the morning and evening hours in combination with a minimal footprint on ecologically sensitive areas – this is the ideal combination for airports on their way to climate neutrality.”
Image source: Fraport AG
