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Speaking at the symbolic laying of the foundation stone of the 50-hectare solar farm, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said it would be the country’s largest industrial solar power plant.
BMW Group Factory Debrecen is building a solar park on 50 hectares, the size of more than 70 football pitches, in cooperation with the E.ON Hungária Group. Seventy-one thousand panels will be installed, partly on the roofs of buildings and partly on the ground. The project has reached another milestone with the foundation stone of the solar park laid.
CEO of BMW Manufacturing Hungary Kft. Hans-Peter Kemser welcomed the participants of the event in Hungarian and said that they had had a fascinating time over the last few months and were only a few weeks away from their first cars, reminding them it had been 28 months since the first stone was laid, and a lot had already been achieved. “Today, we are here to take a big step forward again together with our partners,” the CEO said. He pointed out that 50 hectares had been used to develop the solar park, and the panels would be installed on roofs and the ground, with 71,000 panels. According to Kemser, the capacity would be more than 85 gigawatts, enough to supply more than 20,000 households, and BMW is committed to a sustainable future.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó emphasised that “we live in an era of dangers when crises are constantly testing the world. The Foreign Minister underlined that Hungary is among the ten most open economies, which also affects Hungary. Our country is an outstanding global performer, one of the only three countries where all three German premium car manufacturers are present. Hungary’s automotive industry’s performance has already exceeded HUF 10,000 billion. All this development has been achieved by keeping our responsibility to the planet in mind. Our economic performance has grown while our emissions have steadily decreased. We believe in green growth.”
The Minister mentioned that the electricity demand will be met from green sources; an excellent example is the solar park that has just been set up in Debrecen. He added that Hungary has a solar power capacity of 6,700 megawatts. Szijjártó said it would be the country’s most significant industrial solar power plant, adding that BMW is building a green future in Debrecen, where its pure electric vehicles will roll off the production line in a few months.
László Papp, Mayor of Debrecen, emphasised that BMW is making history with its factory in the city and the new model being produced here. It is doing so sustainably, cooperating with the city and local organisations. “The symbolic cornerstone of the solar park is a guarantee that the city’s economy is taking a significant step towards an environmentally friendly model,” he said, adding that a 24-megawatt solar power plant has been in operation in the city for two years, capable of generating enough energy for 15,000 households. The mayor stressed that the Environmental Monitoring System will start operating at the end of the year, the Civaqua programme will surround the city with a blue ring, and urban regeneration will help green the city. He stressed that all these will contribute to the green development of Debrecen.
MP Lajos Kósa said he genuinely supports environmental protection and believes balanced; conservative sustainability is the future. The MP stressed that they always welcome their German friends with great affection.
Member of the Board of Directors of BMW Manufacturing Hungary Kft. Milan Nedeljković said that it is impressive to see the development of the factory in Debrecen. He emphasized that this development is outstanding for the region, based on a great local team, and the Hungarian government also provides much support. He said, “the Neue Classe will be a jewel of BMW, a joy to drive, redefining the driving experience and what we think about electric vehicles.” Nedeljković pointed out that highly efficient digital methods have now been developed to run the Debrecen plant. Cars are already coming off the production lines and are being used to improve the speed and quality of the processes. Debrecen is a pioneer in the whole automotive industry and thanked their partners for the great results they have achieved. He stressed that the environmental footprint of manufacturing activities will also be minimised through digitalisation. The solar park will be one of the country’s largest and a symbol of the drive for sustainability.
Marc Spieker, a Member of the E.ON Board of Directors, stressed that network activities connect them to 50 million customers. He stressed that their cooperation with BMW is an important milestone for them, and together, they can achieve great results. He stressed that manufacturers must turn to sustainable solutions to protect the environment. He added that the 50,000 square metres of land that will be covered with solar panels in the coming months is impressive.
Source: debrecen.hu
