BayWa r.e. and Mercedes-Benz AG expand their successful partnership with the realisation of six new photovoltaic (PV) rooftop installations at five different production sites in Germany, among those Sindelfingen (two sites), Rastatt, Bremen, Hamburg and Kölleda.
BayWa r.e. was in charge of the planning, design and implementation of these installations which represent a significant step forward for the carmaker towards achieving its ambitious sustainability goals.
The six rooftop projects entail 23,000 PV modules which equals an area of roughly 10 football fields – likewise a total of 389 kilometres of cable were laid and about 650 tons of ballast distributed manually. All in all, the six rooftops will produce the equivalent of the annual electricity consumption of more than 3,300 average households in Germany.
These projects encompass only the latest in a series of cooperations between the renewable energy company and the automotive brand. In the past, BayWa r.e. had already worked with Mercedes-Benz Italy to realise a PV installation in Capena with a total of 1,400 panels and an installed capacity of 500 kWp. In 2022, BayWa r.e. also won the Mercedes-Benz Supplier Award in the sustainability category for creating a rooftop installation for the car manufacturer’s Factory 56 - one of the most modern automotive production facilities in the world - with 12,000 PV modules and a total output of more than 5,000 kWp.
In its latest cooperation with the company, BayWa r.e. used its own novotegra mounting system for the solar panels as well as a specifically designed inverter mounting system. The electricity generated by the rooftop installations is directly supplied to the factory buildings. Efficient logistics ensured that the construction process was smooth at all facilities and at all times. This way, operations continued without being hampered.
Andrea Grotzke, Global Director of Energy Solutions at BayWa r.e., commented: “We are delighted to accomplish these six new projects and continue to support Mercedes-Benz on their sustainability journey. We not only provided them with high-quality PV rooftop installations, but also made sure that their implementation was as seamless as possible and adapted to the challenging roof configurations of the buildings. Corporations like this play a fundamental role in the energy transition and can make a huge impact in unlocking innovative and sustainable solutions. We are looking forward to building on this successful relationship in the future!”
Elke Pußkeiler, Head of Supply Chain at Mercedes-Benz AG said: “Mercedes-Benz intends to increase the share of renewable energy significantly, not least through increased on-site generation capacity. Maximizing the rollout of photovoltaic systems on the roofs of our factories and buildings is therefore a key pillar of our energy strategy. Together with a strong and reliable partner like BayWa r.e. we are going big steps forward in our ambition to let all our own car production locations also become renewable energy production sites.”
(c) photo: Mercedes-Benz AG
