Wind park of the citizens' energy cooperative in Pfaffenhofen a. d. Ilm
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About this good practice
The town of Pfaffenhofen has set itself an even more ambitious target: climate
neutrality by 2035. This goal was set in Pfaffenhofen's political
instrument, the climate protection concept.
The town is already gradually switching to renewable energies and is
setting an important example with the new wind park operated by the
citizens' energy cooperative. Three Enercon E-138 wind turbines were
installed in 2023. The wind turbines have a total height of 229 meters
and a rated output of 4.2 MW each. With a total of 12.6MW, the
community wind park is the most powerful in the region to date. The
wind park produces approx. 22 million kWh per year. With the new
wind park, there are now a total of 4 wind turbines in the Pfaffenhofen
urban area. With the commissioning of the wind turbines, the goal of
100% renewable electricity supply will be achieved in Pfaffenhofen in
2024. In the future, however, Pfaffenhofen's electricity needs will
increase even further, meaning that six more wind turbines will be
required. With the wind park, the citizens' energy cooperative is making a joint
contribution to the energy transition. The cooperative principle will also
enable further expansion of renewable energies in the future, as the
number of members and thus the financial possibilities of the co-
operative continue to grow. Stakeholders and beneficiaries of the wind
park are of course the citizens' energy cooperative, but also the town, the municipal utilities and all the town's
citizens
Resources needed
Total costs: 21 million €.
Project development was largely carried out by the cooperative
itself. The citizens were given the opportunity to reserve shares and participate in the wind park via loans or share in the entrepreneurial
proceeds. The rest of the financing was provided by external funds.
Evidence of success
The wind park generates 22 million kWh of electricity per year. Over
the course of the year, Pfaffenhofen will generate as much renewable
electricity as it consumes once the wind park is commissioned. The
expectation is that the entire town -27,500 inhabitants, local
businesses and industry will be supplied with 100%
renewable electricity from 2024. In future, the electricity from the wind
farm can be purchased by citizens via affiliated companies.
it will save around 13.000 tons of CO2 per year
Potential for learning or transfer
Over the course of more than 10 years, extensive know-how and a
large active network were built up in the areas of technology,
economics, law, administration, organization, project management and
politics. In the areas mentioned, active members were also gained in
the citizens' cooperative, who were able to tackle and implement even
larger projects. The “corporate structure” today has a professional
character. This meant that this large wind park project could be
professionally designed, planned and constructed. The continued
operation of the wind park is also secured. The project company will
remain in the hands of the citizens in the future. The excellent
anchoring in the city and region of Pfaffenhofen a. d. Ilm, with its very
committed citizens and stakeholders, is one of the fundamental key
success factors