Green power from Mottbruch slag heap

Gladbeck/Essen. After a project duration of almost a decade, the wind turbine on Gladbeck’s Mottbruchhalde site has now gone into operation: With immediate effect, the wind turbine with a capacity of 3.5 megawatts (MW) will be feeding around 10 million kilowatt hours (kWh) into the grid each year. The revenue generated also benefits the local people, as Gladbeck Wind GmbH, a joint venture between STEAG and RWE, is based in the city and also pays its trade tax there.

The start-up of the plant had recently been briefly delayed once again. This was down to a technical component that is required to connect the plant to the grid, but for which – similarly to microchips for the automotive industry – there were delivery delays on the global market. “We are now all the more pleased that the plant has now gone into operation,” says Dr. Markus Laukamp, who is responsible for the project at STEAG.

Now that the wind turbine has fed the first electricity into the grid, a trial operation phase follows, which seamlessly transitions into regular operation after the final acceptance of the turbine.

Those behind the project are well aware that even after its successful completion there are still reservations about the wind turbine in parts of the city: “In this respect, the commissioning is no reason for us to be triumphant. On the contrary, we will now step up our efforts to engage in dialog with the administration, politicians and residents. Our goal is to achieve good neighborly coexistence at the slag heap in the long term,” says Markus Laukamp. This also includes the clear commitment of the wind turbine operators STEAG and RWE to the city’s goal of building the “Haldenwelt Mottbruch” as part of the IGA 2027 on and around the slag heap: “We are convinced that wind turbines and ‘Haldenwelt’ are not mutually exclusive. In this respect, we will also enter into a dialog with the city council about the realization of this important urban development project,” says Markus Laukamp.

Initially no official start-up ceremony
Due to the current tense pandemic situation, the operating company is currently foregoing an official start-up event in the form of a ceremony attended by guests and journalists. “If the infection rate eases noticeably in the spring, we can imagine holding an official event of this kind in a few months’ time,” says Markus Laukamp, hoping that the situation will improve as the season changes.

Important contribution to the energy transition
The wind turbine has a capacity of 3.5 MW. Depending on wind levels, it therefore produces around 10 million kWh of renewable, i.e. climate-neutral, green electricity per annum. “This amount is mathematically equivalent to the annual consumption of 3,000 to 3,500 households,” says Gerd Wagner, co-director of the operating company Gladbeck Wind GmbH. The new wind turbine thus makes an important contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions and so also to the success of the energy transition.