New EWS competence centre for wind energy and (agricultural) PV projects in Burgenland

"Our team of 45 experts has been planning and building wind farms for our customers in Austria, Europe and overseas for more than 27 years. The majority of the wind farm output in Burgenland already bears our signature. We were able to accompany almost all wind farm operators in Burgenland and all relevant departments of the Burgenland provincial government in the market introduction of wind energy and now in the repowering projects. With the competence centre currently under construction, we are moving closer to our long-standing regular customers from the wind energy and photovoltaic sectors in eastern Austria," say managing directors Wolfang Neuhofer and Lukas Winkler.

The provincial government of Burgenland was the first province to take agricultural PV into account in the Spatial Planning Act

The expansion of (agricultural) PV systems will and must proceed rapidly due to its great potential. The EWS focus is on the implementation of large-scale (agricultural) PV plants of 5 ha or more. "We expect the Burgenland regional government to continue to actively implement agricultural PV plants and new wind farms in an exemplary manner for many regions in Europe," affirms Joachim Payr, GS of EWS.

Unlike ground-mounted PV systems, agricultural PV systems enable the dual use of agricultural land for food and solar power production. An EWS Sonnenfeld® continues to offer agricultural use on 80 % of the area with the lowest land consumption of max. 2 %. 18 % serve as flowering strips and contribute to increasing biodiversity. In addition, an EWS Sonnenfeld® produces electricity from light at the lowest possible cost.

Joachim Payr: "With the EWS Sonnenfeld® Bruck, we are currently building a research and demonstration facility that will also allow us to further develop and advance our work in practical terms."

Climate-ready and ready for the future thanks to environmentally friendly construction and modern building technology

Wolfgang Neuhofer and Lukas Winkler: "High environmental and innovation criteria and good train connections for up to 25 employees are our requirements. What applies to wind and (agricultural) PV projects also applies to our competence centre: planning and implementing as environmentally friendly as possible with the most modern technology and construction methods and the least amount of land sealing".

Under the direction of Verena Bernardi and carried out by construction companies from Burgenland, a leading company for climate protection projects is being built on 470 m² of floor space, setting a good example:

The building is being constructed in an energy-efficient and low-energy manner. The entire energy supply for heating, air-conditioning, the vehicle fleet and office operations comes 100% from renewable energy from wind and sun. The building is equipped with a PV system that, among other things, feeds the green EWS fleet with fuel from the sun via 13 e-charging points including load management. A built-in energy storage system ensures high self-consumption of the self-generated energy and avoids load peaks for the grid operator. The façade is greened by a climbing construction, which shades the resulting open spaces/courtyards. All car parking spaces and the driveway will not be sealed, but paved with water-permeable material; all other areas will be landscaped and planted with fruit trees. By using ecologically safe building materials, the EWS Competence Centre for Wind Energy & (Agricultural) Photovoltaics also ensures a good working climate.

"The construction team is looking forward to a modern office building that will bring a breath of fresh air to the cooperation. The workplace design has been adapted to our working methods and processes and enables a smooth office routine. The location next to the cycle path, the railway station, the centre of Parndorf, the outlet centre's gastronomy as well as the proximity to all construction sites to be supervised in the eastern wind and sun region keep the distances for the team short. We can hardly wait!" Markus Bernardi, Head of Construction Management:

Our team will continue to actively support the many operators and the Burgenland regional government in achieving the climate targets with energy and technical solutions with the highest level of social acceptance.