XL PV Freeland projects in Adelsheim, Eppingen and Hilzingen-Solar Parks in Baden-Württemberg

Published on: March 26, 2025 / Updated on: March 26, 2025 – Author: Konrad Wolfenstein

XL ground-mounted PV projects in Adelsheim, Eppingen and Hilzingen – Solar parks in Baden-Württemberg – Creative image: Xpert.Digital

Innovative progress: Solar parks are driving the energy transition forward in Baden-Württemberg

XL PV Freeland projects in Adelsheim, Eppingen and Hilzingen-Solar Parks in Baden-Württemberg

The energy transition in Baden-Württemberg is progressing rapidly, as demonstrated by three current solar projects in different regions of the state. Innovative ground-mounted solar power plants with various concepts and participation models are currently being built in Adelsheim, Eppingen, and Hilzingen.

The Citizen. Eppingen Solar Park: A Community Energy Transition

The community solar park in Eppingen is one of the largest citizen-led renewable energy projects in the region. Planned by the Kraichgau Citizens' Energy Cooperative (BEG Kraichgau), the ground-mounted photovoltaic system covers 35 hectares of module area and is expected to achieve an impressive output of 60 MWp. With a projected annual electricity generation of 60 million kilowatt-hours, the plant could cover the electricity needs of more than 21,000 households – roughly half of Eppingen's total electricity demand.

History and planning

The initiative for this ambitious project originally came from two farmers from Eppingen, Eckhard and Julius Bitterich, who asked BEG to build a community solar park in Eppingen. The topographically favorable location in a depression on the main road between Eppingen and Richen, opposite the Tiefental industrial park, offers ideal conditions for this project. This location also minimizes the visual impact on the landscape.

Ecological added value and citizen participation

What makes this project particularly remarkable is the combination of energy production and ecological sustainability. An approximately 10-hectare green space of high ecological value is planned between the solar panels, which could potentially also be used as pasture for sheep. This dual-use concept contributes to biodiversity and creates synergies between energy production and agriculture.

Citizen participation is central to this project. Since the last information evening in March 2024, BEG Kraichgau has seen an impressive 30% increase in membership. Eppingen now represents the second largest member group within the cooperative after Sinsheim, demonstrating the strong local interest in this project.

Economic aspects and timeline

A unique feature of the community solar park is that it is being built entirely without subsidies. The project company, in which BEG, landowners, and the city of Eppingen can become shareholders, will be headquartered in Eppingen and pay taxes there. The electricity generated will be marketed via long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs), with some of it potentially being sold to the Eppingen municipal utility or directly to companies in the neighboring industrial park. The solar park is scheduled to go into operation in 2026.

Photovoltaic open-field system in Adelsheim-Roigheim: Sheep under solar panels

Another innovative solar park concept is emerging in the Adelsheim region: Bürgerenergie Bauland eG (BEG Bauland) has invested €100,000 in a ground-mounted photovoltaic system in the Ebene/Schafberg area of Roigheim. The corresponding investment agreement was signed on June 21, 2024, by BEG Bauland board members Silke Mai and Wolfram Bernhardt, and Harald Endreß, managing director of ZEAG Renewable Energies.

Technical specifications and performance

The plant has a capacity of 8,700 kWp and generates an annual energy yield of approximately 9.31 million kWh. Since its commissioning on July 18, 2023, the plant has supplied green electricity for roughly 3,100 households. Sheep graze beneath the approximately 16,000 photovoltaic modules, providing a unique ecological benefit and naturally supporting land management.

Future-oriented collaborations

In close collaboration with the Baden-Württemberg State Sheep Breeders' Association, local shepherd Martin Ernst, and the project developers at ZEAG, guidelines for future projects of this kind are being developed. This form of cooperation could serve as a model for similar projects in the region.

Citizen participation and further developments

Residents of Roigheim and the neighboring municipalities of Adelsheim, Osterburken, Ravenstein, Rosenberg, and Seckach can participate in the project through BEG Bauland. This expands BEG Bauland's portfolio, which, in addition to the ground-mounted photovoltaic plant in Roigheim, also has a stake in a plant in Sindolsheim and operates two of its own rooftop installations – one on the new Eckenberghalle in Adelsheim with approximately 140 kWp and another on a private roof in Merchingen with approximately 100 kWp.

Parallel to this development, the groundwork was also laid in Adelsheim for a new nursing home and another solar park, with excavators and construction equipment already in use.

Solar thermal open-field plant in Hilzingen: Heat energy from the sun

As its third innovative renewable energy project, the municipality of Hilzingen is planning a new ground-mounted solar thermal plant with 1,400 square meters of collectors. Unlike the two previous photovoltaic projects, which generate electricity, this plant will be for heat generation.

Hilzingen as a pioneer for renewable energies

The municipality of Hilzingen already has experience with renewable energies: since 2015, it has been known as a bioenergy village, after the district heating network, built in 2008, was transferred to solarcomplex AG. The base load in the network is supplied by the waste heat from a combined heat and power (CHP) unit at a biogas plant on the outskirts of the village, while 34 buildings are supplied via a 4.6 km long district heating pipeline. This infrastructure could now be supplemented by the planned ground-mounted solar thermal system.

Solar thermal energy as a sustainable heat source

Solar thermal systems convert solar radiation into heat by having collectors absorb the heat and transport it to a heat storage tank via a circulating heat transfer fluid. This technology is particularly well-suited for domestic hot water preparation and heating support in residential buildings and can cover a significant portion of the year-round hot water demand.

In the summer months, modern solar thermal systems can supply 40-60% of the energy needed for hot water preparation, while in the winter months they primarily serve to preheat domestic hot water. They thus represent an effective supplement to conventional heating systems and contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions.

Baden-Württemberg on the path to the energy transition

The three projects presented in Adelsheim, Eppingen, and Hilzingen illustrate the diversity and innovation in the field of solar energy in Baden-Württemberg. While the Eppingen community solar park and the photovoltaic open-field system in Adelsheim-Roigheim are geared towards generating electricity, the planned solar thermal plant in Hilzingen focuses on heat generation.

Of particular note is the strong citizen participation in these projects, which not only enables democratic involvement in the energy transition but also promotes regional economic development. Furthermore, the innovative concepts for the dual use of land – whether through sheep grazing or the integration of ecologically valuable green spaces – demonstrate that energy production and nature conservation can go hand in hand.

With these and similar projects, Baden-Württemberg is making an important contribution to the energy transition and to achieving Germany's climate protection goals.

Suitable for: